The Brightest Witch of Her Age
by islandgirl394
Summary: Hermione Granger has always felt like the odd one out. Until Professor McGonagall comes knocking at her door. Journey through the Harry Potter series through the eyes of Hermione to see what those seven years were like from her perspective.
1. Welcome to the Wizarding World

**Thank you for choosing this story!**

**Hope you enjoy and please review :)**

**Disclaimer: This is a work of fan fiction using characters, plots, a****nd places from the Harry Potter world, which is trademarked by JK Rowling. However, this work is my own ****and is i****n no way endorsed by JK Rowling or anyone affiliated with the Harry Potter universe.**

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_Table of Contents: _

_Content associated with HP and the Philosopher's Stone: Chapters 1-18_

_Content associated with HP and the Chamber of Secrets: Chapters 19-33_

_Content associated with HP and the Prisoner of Azkaban: Chapters 34-67_

_Content associated with HP and the Goblet of Fire: Chapter 68 onwards_

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Chapter 1: Welcome to the Wizarding World

I heard a knock on the front door, quickly followed by my Mum calling to me from the bottom of the stairs.

"Hermione, please come down to the living room," she called.

I sighed, because I was just at the last few pages of the book I was reading, and I really wanted to finish it. I had already finished the summer reading list for my year, and I was now reading the books on the summer reading list for the year above me.

I got to my feet and headed downstairs to the living room, curious to see who had come to visit. When I walked into the room, though, I did not recognize the woman sitting in the armchair across from Mum and Dad.

She stood up to shake my hand, and I noticed that she was dressed rather strangely. She wore a long dark green cloak which completely covered any regular clothes she may have been wearing underneath. Her hair was pulled back into a tight bun and she struck me as a very serious person.

"You must be Hermione," she said, and she sat back down in the armchair, leaving me to sit in the rocking chair since Mum and Dad were on the couch.

I looked over at Mum and Dad in the hopes of getting some kind of clue as to who this woman was, but they appeared just as confused as I was.

"Yes, I am," I said, unsure of how else to respond.

"My name is Professor McGonagall, I am a teacher at a very special school," the woman replied. I suddenly became excited. Maybe I was getting accepted into one of the advanced programs I had applied for, or perhaps it was the school for gifted students that my last school suggested I apply to. Maybe I was going to be allowed to skip a year or two and move into the seventh or eighth grade.

"I am here to offer you a place at my school," Professor McGonagall continued. A smile started to spread across my face. Now I wouldn't have to endure months of being taunted by Nancy Hummel and her friends for being smart. I would be amongst others who were just as smart as I was, kids who understood the importance of paying attention in class and the joys of doing homework, like-minded people who I could relate to.

"Which school are you from?" Dad asked from the couch. "Are you from the Academy?" he was referring to the Academy for gifted children, of course, to which we had applied a couple months ago.

"No, I am not from any school you have ever heard of. The name of my school is Hogwarts," Professor McGonagall replied. I wondered what kind of school Hogwarts could be and then I wondered how I could have been accepted into this school without even having applied.

"Hogwarts is not the kind of school you would expect, I am sure," Professor McGonagall continued, pausing to see if any of us were going to intervene. "Hogwarts is a school that teaches the study of magic."

Magic – what did she even mean? Was this woman suggesting that I attend a school to learn card tricks and how to saw through people in boxes and then put them back together? It was the silliest thing I had ever heard, and I am certainly a person who believes in doing serious things.

Mum seemed to be wondering the same thing as me, because she asked, "what do you mean when you say magic?"

In response, Professor McGonagall reached under her cloak and pulled out a wooden stick. She raised the stick and pointed it at the coffee table in the center of the room.

"Wingardium leviosa," she said, and the table slowly began to rise off the floor. She kept her wand trained on it and it rose all the way up to the ceiling and then came back down again. I couldn't believe what I was seeing, I was at a complete loss for words, and then I regained control of my brain and remembered that magic is not real.

"It's just an illusion," I said. "There must be wires or something holding the table up. I've read all about these kinds of tricks."

"Do you see any ropes or wires?" Professor McGonagall asked calmly. Though I tried hard to find something, I could not figure out what she used to lift the table. Seeing that I was still not convinced, she pointed her wand at the remote control for the television and said, "accio." The remote immediately flew into her outstretched hand.

I still had a little difficulty believing her. I mean, all the facts say that magic cannot and does not exist, but Professor McGonagall was making it very difficult to cling to the facts. Seeing that I was still struggling with what she was trying to tell me, Professor McGonagall stood up, and with a very determined expression on her face, she disappeared out of thin air, only to appear seconds later across the room at the doorway.

I realized that there was no way she could have faked it and I came to the logical conclusion that magic exists. Mum and Dad on the other hand, looked terrified.

"Do you believe me now?" Professor McGonagall asked, heading back to her chair and sitting down.

"It would be foolish of me not to," I responded matter-of-factly. Now that I'd accepted magic as a reality, I was intrigued to know more. The pursuit of knowledge had always been the most important thing to me, and this was a topic I knew nothing about. In fact, it was a topic vey few knew about, which made it all the more interesting to me.

"Excuse me, just a minute," Dad interrupted. "You expect to come into our home and do a couple of tricks and have us just suddenly accept that this is for real? What kind of people do you take us for?"

"Dad, come on, think rationally," I said, turning to face both of my parents. "A carnival magician would have needed ropes and wires to lift the table. Professor McGonagall did it all on her own. And how to you explain the teleporting? When the carnival magicians do it, they need to hide behind a screen and then sneak away. Professor McGonagall just vanished out of thin air. These clearly aren't parlour tricks, so the only logical explanation is that she's doing real magic."

"Hermione, sweetie," Mum spoke up, "it's sweet that you've so quickly jumped to the conclusion that this is all for real, but there must be another explanation that you just haven't thought of yet."

"I'm not jumping to any conclusions," I protested. I didn't like the insinuation. I didn't jump to anything. I came to conclusions after a proper analysis of the facts. And the facts in this case were that somehow, magic was real. The irrational thing would be to refuse to believe in spite of overwhelming evidence. "Mum, you know me. Have I ever accepted something without first considering every alternate possibility?"

I could see the struggle Mum and Dad had to come to terms with this new revelation. Mum's face was contorted, and Dad's brow was furrowed. But eventually, both reluctantly nodded, accepting that as usual, I was right.

"Alright, so magic is real," Dad said. "Why are we finding out now?"

"Hermione," Professor McGonagall began, gesturing to me while still talking to Mum and Dad, "is a member of the magical community, having magical blood in her veins, while the two of you do not have any magic in your blood and as such are members of the non-magical community. Due to the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy, members of the magical community are prohibited from revealing the very existence of a magical community to members of the non-magical community unless a situation such as this arises."

"How did Hermione end up with magic in her blood if we don't have any?" Dad asked, clearly still confused.

"Sometimes this does happen; a magical child can be born to non-magical parents. I do not assume to be an expert in why these things happen, nor do I assume to be an expert in why non-magical children are born to magical parents, though this is a particularly rare occurrence."

"So, you want Hermione to go to your school and learn how to do magic?" Dad asked.

"Yes, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is, in my opinion, the best Wizarding School in perhaps the whole world. If Hermione wants to go, she has a place there," Professor McGonagall replied.

When she said this, I started to picture myself doing magic. I saw myself learning a whole new brand of subjects. I knew immediately why I never fit in at my primary school. It was because I was never meant to attend a school like that. I saw myself reading spell books and waving my very own wand, and I saw myself never having to face Nancy Hummel or any of her friends ever again.

Without even realizing I had opened my mouth, I found myself speaking. "Yes, I want to go to Hogwarts."

Professor McGonagall smiled and pulled an envelope out from underneath her cloak. "Here is your official Hogwarts acceptance letter," she said, handing it to me. I ripped it open, eager to read it.

_HOGWARTS SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDRY_

_Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore_

_(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock,Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)_

_Dear Ms. Granger._

_We are pleased to inform you that you have a place at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment. Term begins on 1 September. We await your owl by no later than 31 July._

_Yours sincerely,_

_Minerva McGonagall_

_Deputy Headmistress_

So, Professor McGonagall was the Deputy Headmistress. I supposed that was why she was the one who came to explain everything to us. I read the letter over again.

"What does it mean by 'we await your owl'?" I asked.

"You do not have to worry about that part. I will be returning to Hogwarts myself shortly and I will inform the Headmaster that you intend to attend. Owl post is typically the way witches and wizards normally communicate with each other," she replied.

This brought up another question I had. "You said witches and wizards," I said slowly. "Does that mean I'm a witch?"

"Yes," Professor McGonagall said simply.

I looked back at my letter and noticed that it mentioned a booklist that was supposed to be enclosed. I reached back into the envelope and drew it out, reading through the list, curious to see what sorts of things I would be learning about.

I looked up from the list of things I would need, "Where am I supposed to buy all of this?" I asked, realizing that in addition to the spell books, I would need other supplies, like a cauldron and a wand. It's not like those sorts of things were sold at the local department store.

"If you aren't busy right now, I can show you," Professor McGonagall said, looking over at Mum and Dad.

"Well, I suppose we might as well go," Mum said with a reluctant acceptance. "Let me go get my purse."


	2. School Supply Shopping

Chapter 2: School Supply Shopping

Once Professor McGonagall had showed us how to get into Diagon Alley through the Leaky Cauldron and had told us that we could exchange our money for wizarding money at the bank, Gringotts, she left, saying she had important business to attend to. She also informed me that I would find my train ticket in the envelope my letter had come in and that the train would leave at 11 o'clock on September the first from King's Cross Station.

Diagon Alley was like no place I had ever seen before. There were tons of people walking around wearing cloaks and robes just like what Professor McGonagall had been wearing. I suddenly felt out of place in my jeans and shirt, though I didn't dwell on it for long, because as we continued walking down the street, I started noticing some other people dressed like me, and I assumed that they also came from non-magical parentage.

Despite my eagerness to start buying books and supplies right away, we had to first exchange our money, so we headed towards the bank. The bank was by far the largest building around, and it was made of white marble with bronze doors. Standing beside the doors, however, was a creature I couldn't identify. It was small, wearing a scarlet and gold uniform and had a pointed beard. When it reached towards the door handles to open it for us, I saw that it had very long fingers. I decided I probably shouldn't think of it as an 'it', and I decided he was definitely a male, though I was extremely eager to learn what kind of creature he was.

Another one of the creatures the next set of doors for us once and we stepped into the bank. It was a vast hall of marble, with long counters behind which the creatures were sitting on high stools doing various types of work.

Unsure how to proceed, I looked up at Dad, "where do we go now?"

He shrugged and looked around. "I suppose we should go up to a counter," he finally replied. So, we walked over to the nearest counter and stood before the creature that was behind it.

The creature raised its head and scrutinized us with his beady eyes before asking what we wanted.

"We want to exchange our money for wizard money," Dad said, holding out a fistful of cash. The creature raised his arm and with his long fingers, pointed to a man sitting behind a counter across the hall. He appeared to be the only human who worked here with the creatures.

Dad thanked the creature and we headed over to the man, who appeared much more jovial than the grim-looking creatures.

"How can I help you?" he asked, a smile spreading across his face.

"I'd like to exchange this for some wizard money," Dad replied, handing him the cash he had in his hand. The man took it and began counting it out.

"First time in Diagon Alley?" the man asked conversationally.

"Yes," Dad replied. "We only just found out today that our little Hermione was a witch," he said, patting me on the back.

The man behind the counter raised his head to look at me and smiled. "Well that's just great news," he said, now counting out some strange-looking coins which I assumed was the wizard money. "Alrighty, here we are," he said, handing Dad the coins. "The gold coins are called Galleons, the silver ones are called Sickles and the bronze ones are called Knuts," he explained. "Every Galleon is worth seventeen Sickles and every Sickle is worth twenty-nine Knuts."

I wondered why they used such random numbers. Seventeen and twenty-nine didn't really seem to make all that much sense to me. They had no common denominator and in fact were both prime numbers, which seemed to be the only thing they had in common – and not a very useful commonality either.

We thanked the man and he wished us good luck as we left the bank, returning to the busy and crowded street. I immediately became excited as I pulled out my list of required items and started picturing myself buying all the wonderful things on it.

School supply shopping has always been one of my favorite activities. Buying new notebooks and binders and getting a new and clean eraser and knowing that you would soon be filling your notebooks with information and dirtying your eraser by erasing mistakes when taking down notes.

I especially loved buying my schoolbooks. Books are one of the best things in life. You can buy a book and have absolutely no knowledge of whatever is inside, and then you open it up and when you've read it, your mind is filled with all this new knowledge that you never had before. To me, a new book was like an untapped pool of possibility just waiting to be learned.

I pulled out my supply list and decided to be smart about things and go in order, so as not to miss anything.

"Alright, the first thing I need is a uniform," I said to Mum and Dad. "Where do we go for that?"

"I'm not sure, maybe we should ask someone," Mum said, looking at Dad, who nodded. They both appeared to be feeling out of place, which made sense, especially since they weren't magic. I suddenly felt bad, knowing that while I was finally feeling like I was fitting in for the first time in my life, they were probably more uncomfortable here than anywhere else, being two non-magical people invading a magical district.

"Excuse me," Dad said to an older lady who was passing by, "we were wondering if you could tell us where we might buy a school uniform for Hogwarts?"

"Oh, are you muggle-born dear?" the lady asked me. I wasn't sure what that meant, but it didn't matter, because she continued, "Madam Malkin's would be the place to go." She pointed us in the right direction and then hurried along and continued with her own shopping. I noted that she hadn't actually answered Dad, but rather had only spoken to me, ignoring both Mum and Dad as though they weren't even there. I decided not to dwell on it, figuring I was overreacting over nothing.

We walked in the direction she had indicated and soon came to a shop called _Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions_, which was obviously where the older lady had intended us to go.

We entered and a very nice-looking lady emerged from the back room, smiling and asking if I was here for my Hogwarts robes. I told her I was, and she immediately set me up on a footstool and slipped a robe over my head. She started pinning it all over and measuring things, and I just stood there, while Mum and Dad settled themselves in a pair of chairs next to the mirror.

The lady, who I assumed was Madam Malkin, hummed while she pinned my robes, and when she was finished, she took them into the back room, telling me to wait. While she was gone, a young boy and his mother entered the shop, clearly in the middle of an argument.

"Why can't I get new robes like Percy?" the boy demanded.

"I'm sorry Ron, but you're just going to have to make do with Percy's old robes. It would be silly to buy brand new robes when we have perfectly good ones at home."

"Why doesn't Percy have to wear Charlie's old robes then?" the boy, Ron, insisted.

"Because Percy is a prefect now. He can't be walking around in Charlie's old things. They're all torn up and scuffed from all that Quidditch he used to play, not to mention the adventures he would go on with Hagrid in that forest. It would be unbecoming for Percy, now that he's representing his house. Besides, Percy's old robes are in great condition."

The boy and mother continued to argue, but I politely tuned them out. This was clearly a money issue, and the mother didn't want to say it out loud. I felt bad, but there wasn't much I could do about it, and I had my own things to worry about.

Madam Malkin emerged from the back moments later my entire school uniform. Mum and Dad paid for the clothes while I pulled out my list again and checked to see what I would need next. There was a whole list of schoolbooks that I was going to need, so before we left, I asked Madam Malkin where I should go to buy my books.

She told me to go to a shop called _Flourish and Blotts_ and told us how to get there. We thanked her and headed in the direction she had indicated. When we finally found _Flourish and Blotts_, we entered, and I was utterly taken aback. There were hundreds of thousands of books in this shop and the stacks reached all the way up to the ceiling. I walked through the aisles of books and marvelled at all the titles that there were. There were books on every subject I could ever think of and more on subjects I would never have dreamed existed. Eventually, I located all the books that were on my list and I also chose a few extras to read for a little background, since I was new to this world. I was especially keen on reading _Hogwarts: A History_, since it was about the school I would be attending.

After convincing Mum and Dad to buy me all the extra books in addition to my set books, we went to get the next item on the list; a wand. We went to a shop called _Ollivanders_. The words on the door indicated that the shop had existed since 382 B.C. which explained why the shop appeared so rundown.

When we entered the shop, an older man appeared from the rows upon rows of shelves all stacked with long and thin boxes.

"Good afternoon," the man said, and I couldn't help but feel a little bit nervous at the way his eyes were shining so brightly despite the darkness and gloom of the shop.

"Hi. I'd like to buy a wand," I said.

"Yes, of course. Your first wand, I believe, let me see…" He peered at me for a moment and then walked back into one of the rows of shelves, leaving me and my parents alone at the front of the shop.

He returned with a tape measure, which started taking my measurements all by itself, which certainly caught me off guard. While the tape measure measured, he began explaining to me about the different types of wands.

When it was finished, he took the tape measure back and chose a box from one of the shelves. He placed teh box on the counter and opened it as though it was the most delicate thing in the world. He gingerly lifted the wand out of the box and handed it to me.

"Maple and dragon heartstring, seven and three quarter inches, springy," he announced.

I stood with it for a moment, not sure what to do.

"Wave it around now, come on," he said, so I flicked the wand in the air, but no sooner had I tried it, it had been snatched out of my hand.

He chose a new wand and handed it to me.

"Beechwood and unicorn hair, eleven and a half inches, supple," he said.

I began to wave it, but it too was snatched out of my hand.

"Aha!" he said, upon choosing a third wand. "Vine wood and dragon heartstring, ten and three quarter inches, nice and flexible," he told me. When he handed it to me immediate warmth spread through my fingers and into my body. I saw red sparks shoot out the end of the wand, and the man smiled for the first time since I had entered the shop, clapping his hands together.

"And there you are young miss," he said, taking the wand back and packaging it in the box. "You very own wand."

The rest of the day passed in a blur of activity as we purchased a cauldron and scales and all the other things on the list. I opted not to get a pet, though the supply list said I could bring one. I had enough going on right now without needing to take care of an animal.

When we were finished shopping, though I could have stayed in Diagon Alley for hours more, just experiencing and exploring all the shops and sights, I could tell Mum and Dad were spent, so I suggested we head home for the day. They both looked relieved, and I remembered that I would have to be sensitive to their adjustment period. Though for me, everything felt like it was finally falling into place, it was going to take a while for my parents to come to terms with everything changing so suddenly.


	3. Will it be Enough?

Chapter 3: Will it be Enough?

I only had two days left before I was going to be leaving for Hogwarts. I had, of course, read through all the books that had been assigned, and I had read all the extra books that I had convinced my parents to buy for me. I had also started working on some of the spells that were in _The Standard Book of Spells: Grade 1_ and I had managed to work a few of them.

I was currently trying to master the first spell Professor McGonagall had done when she came to explain everything, _wingardium leviosa_. It was supposed to be a levitation charm, but so far all I had been able to do was make my quill twitch. I was feeling very discouraged. I'm sure all the students from magical families would already know how to levitate. I mean, its right at the beginning of _The Standard Book of Spells_, which must mean that it's the easiest one, and I couldn't even do that.

I pulled the spell book closer to me at my desk and read the section again. I decided that my pronunciation must be the problem, so I started emphasizing different syllables to see if that would work. On my seventh try, the quill finally started to rise off my desk. In my excitement, I lost my concentration and the quill fell. I immediately grabbed it and dipped it in some ink, marking the correct pronunciation in my book. After a few more practices, I was able to fly my quill around the room, and I smiled to myself, glad that I had finally been successful.

"Hermione, it's time for dinner," Mum called from downstairs. I put my wand on my desk and headed downstairs to eat. I hadn't realized how late it was, it felt like lunch had been minutes ago.

"How was your day, sweetie?" Dad asked as he set dinner on the table. Mum and Dad are dentists, and they worked during the day, so I usually spent my days home alone during the summer.

"Pretty good," I replied. "I mastered the levitation charm."

"That's wonderful news honey," Dad said. We lapsed into a temporary silence broken only when Mum came bustling into the dining room with the potatoes. Mum and Dad were still having a bit of a hard time adjusting to me being a witch. I'd offered for them to read some of the books I had bought, but that seemed to make them even more uncomfortable. I had hoped they would adjust during the last month, but they hadn't.

"Hi honey!" Mum said, sitting down at the table and starting to fill her plate. "How are you?" she asked. I noticed that this question was quite different from Dad's _how was your day?_ She didn't want to hear more facts that I'd learned about goblin rebellions or when dragon breeding was outlawed, and especially not that I had finally been successful in levitating my quill.

"I'm great Mum," I replied, filling my own plate. As sad as I was feeling that they were still so uncomfortable with this whole thing, I was sure that they would be much more open to everything after they had sat with it for a little while.

"What are your plans for tomorrow?" Dad finally asked. Mum and Dad worked weekends as well as weekdays, and tomorrow was no different. They had decided to take Sunday off so that they could accompany me to King's Cross and see me off to school, so that was something.

"I was going to pack my things and maybe practice a little bit more before I get to Hogwarts," I said honestly, even though I knew they wished I would have left out the last part.

"How about we go out to dinner tomorrow night?" Mum asked. "You know, before you go away to school."

"That would be great," I replied, smiling. At least they would be able to spend a little bit of time with me before I left.

When it was time for dessert, Mum brought out a nice big bowl of fresh fruit. Being dentists, my parents didn't believe in sugary desserts, or candy, or anything sweet really. I had never been trick-or-treating, we never had any sweets in the house, and they even bought me sugarless gum. Not that I'm complaining, especially since my teeth had always been extremely healthy thanks to them.

After dessert, I went back up to my room while Mum and Dad went to work on some paperwork that they had brought home with them from work. They always brought their paperwork home with them. They said they'd rather do it at home once the office was closed so that they could use the time they were actually at work to see patients. After all, the more patients they're able to see in a day, the more money they can make. It was a logical way of doing things, though it did mean I didn't see all that much of them.

When I got back to my room, I opened _The Standard Book of Spells_ again and read up on the unlocking spell. Once I felt I was ready to try it out, I walked over to my door and locked it manually; the locking spell wasn't in _The Standard Book of Spells_, so I assumed it was more advanced. I pointed my wand at the door and visualized the door unlocking.

"_Alohomora_," I said clearly, and with a click, the lock flung back into the unlocked position. My face broke out into a wide grin. I'd got it on my first try! I practiced it a few more times before I finally decided to take a break from spellcasting.

I decided to start packing my trunk, since there was plenty I would not need from now until I got to Hogwarts. My cauldron, being the largest thing to go into my trunk, was the first thing I put in. Then I packed most of my books, keeping _The Standard Book of Spells _and _Hogwarts: A History_ out, knowing I would be reading them some more tomorrow. Then I packed my parchment and my quills and my other supplies. I started to run out of room in my trunk, so I began piling my clothes into my cauldron.

Sooner than I would have thought, I was all packed, and I realized that I no longer had an activity for tomorrow, but I didn't worry. There were plenty more spells I could learn. I was starting to feel a little tired, so I decided it was time for bed. I put on my pyjamas and crept downstairs to say goodnight to Mum and Dad. They were sitting at their desks, which were positioned side by side in their office, working on their paperwork.

"Goodnight Mum, Dad," I said from the doorway. I walked into the room and hugged them each in turn.

"Goodnight sweetheart," I heard Mum say as I was leaving the room.

I went back upstairs to my room and climbed into bed. I pulled _Hogwarts: A History_ into my lap and opened it up and began to read. I can't fall asleep if I don't read right beforehand. Somehow, reading seemed to have a calming effect on me. Well, it always had until then. As I read on and on, words I had already read through twice before, I became more and more panicked. There was so much to know. How was I going to measure up to witches and wizards who'd been practicing magic since they were born?

I'd always been the smart one, top of the class. What would I be when I got to Hogwarts? Surely having only found out about the wizarding world a month ago I would seem utterly dumb next to all the other students. As I frantically re-read the pages of _Hogwarts: A History_ I tried to memorize everything I read so that I wouldn't forget a thing.

When my head finally felt like it was going to fall off from too much thinking, I put my book down on my nightstand and laid down properly, shutting my eyes and willing myself to fall asleep.

I promised myself that tomorrow I would practice the charm that could fix broken objects and the charm that would light something on fire. I also decided that maybe I should even try learning a little bit of basic transfiguration, even though it appeared to be a particularly difficult subject.

As I went over my knowledge of the medieval witch burnings in my head, I became more and more worried. What if I didn't know enough? What if I hadn't learned enough magic? What if the other students laughed at me for being dumb? What if I walked into potions and blew up my cauldron, or worse, someone else's? It was the first time I had ever felt like this and as I drifted further and further into sleep, I just couldn't help repeating over and over in my head; will everything I've done be enough?

_I was sitting at a desk in my old classroom, the only person in the room. Everything was the same as I remembered it from last year, except that the posters the hung on the wall that used to say things like 'achieve', 'teamwork', and 'honesty' now read things like 'magic', 'potions', and 'spell work'. _

_I continued to sit and stare around at the familiar, but unfamiliar room, and then suddenly students began to file into the classroom, taking seats all around me. I didn't recognize any of their faces, but they were all wearing robes while I was wearing a blouse and floral skirt that my mum had picked out for me. _

_Professor McGonagall entered the room next, wearing the same green robes that she'd worn the day I'd met her. Her hair was pulled up tight in a bun like before, and her expression was stern._

_"__Alright class," she announced. "Welcome to your first day at Hogwarts. We'll begin the class by going around the room and saying our name, and then performing the most advanced spell you know so far."_

_I immediately ran through the list of spells I'd learned and tried to decide which to perform. There was the levitation spell, but it was on page one of my spell book. Surely it wouldn't be considered advanced at all. I eventually settled on showing everyone the unlocking spell, since it was near the end of the book and therefore probably considered more difficult._

_The first student stood, said her name, and then proceeded to cast a spell that completely vanished her desk. Professor McGonagall and the rest of the class applauded her, but I just sat and stared. According to _A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration_, vanishing was much too advanced to even be covered. How did this first year know how to do it when it wasn't even covered in their textbook?_

_The second student, a boy, stated his name and then proceeded to disappear and then reappear on the other side of the room, much like how Professor McGonagall had done when she'd been trying to prove to me and my parents that magic existed. As everyone else congratulated the boy, my jaw practically hit the floor. Apparition – the act of teleporting oneself – was something only adult wizards could do. It was considered highly challenging and highly dangerous. Some wizards never properly learned to do it._

_The third student made it start raining right there in the middle of the room, and the fourth student transformed themselves into a giraffe. When the fifth student brought all the chairs to life and they started dancing around the room, I jumped to my feet (partly because my chair had forced me to) and cried, "what's going on here? How can you all do these advanced spells?"_

_"__And your name?" Professor McGonagall asked, in a bored voice._

_"__Hermione Granger," I replied._

_"__Alright, let's see your spell work," she said._

_Taking a deep breath, I walked over to the door of the classroom and turned the lock. Then I took out my wand and cast the unlocking charm, watching the button click into the unlocked position with pride. I turned back to the rest of the class._

_"__That's it?" a girl with blonde hair demanded. "That's all you can do?"_

_I shrugged. "I've only had a month to prac – "_

_"__That was pathetic!" the girl continued, ignoring my explanation. Before my eyes, her features began to morph, and she suddenly turned into Nancy Hummel. "Hermione Granger," she mocked. "Always sticking her nose in a book instead of doing something real. You really think you're going to fit in at Hogwarts? Well think again. You don't belong anywhere. You're just a little bookworm nobody."_

I woke with a start, my sheets soaked with nervous sweat. I had to take a few deep breaths to calm my racing heart, and once I had, my mind started to race, millions of thoughts running through it. What if my dream was right? What if I never fit in at Hogwarts the way I'd never fit in at my last school? What if I was destined never to fit in anywhere? I had to keep practicing. The only way I was going to fit in was if I made sure that I knew as much magic as the other students.

Turning my light back on, I reached for my copy of _The Standard Book of Spells_ and flipped it open to the page for the wand-lighting charm, _lumos._ It seemed fitting, to learn it in the middle of the night, when it was dark. Determinedly, I began to read up on the charm, paying close attention to the details for the wand movements. I would learn every spell in this book, if that's what it took. I was determined. I wasn't going to be a bookworm nobody anymore. Things were going to be different at Hogwarts. They had to be.


	4. Going on an Adventure

Chapter 4: Going on an Adventure

The time had finally arrived. It was time to leave for Hogwarts. I was going to leave my parents and my house and my room and go to a place I had only read about that I hadn't even known existed until a month ago. I sat in the backseat of the car while Mum and Dad drove me to the train station.

We pulled into the parking lot outside of King's Cross Station and climbed out of the car. Dad opened the trunk or the car and heaved my trunk out. It was extra heavy because of all the extra books I had bought. I was wearing my regular clothes, but I planned on changing into my robes as soon as I got onto the train.

"Do you have your ticket?" Mum asked me, realizing she hadn't checked before we left the house.

I pulled my envelope out of my pocket and withdrew the ticket. I hadn't really given it much thought until now.

"What platform are we going to?" Dad asked.

"Um…" I said, frowning at the ticket. Surely, there must be some kind of mistake. I must need my eyes checked; I was reading platform nine and three-quarters. I handed it to Dad to read, hoping I was just hallucinating.

"Platform nine and three quarters?" he asked, half-statement and half-question. "Where's that supposed to be?"

"I don't know, but maybe we could ask someone," mum said, frowning. None of us had ever heard of a platform nine and three quarters. We entered King's Cross and rolled my trunk towards the general area of platforms nine and ten. We looked around and didn't see anything that resembled a platform nine and three quarters. Despite the early hour of our departure, it was getting dangerously close to eleven o'clock and I was starting to panic.

Mum steered us towards a guard and asked where we could find platform nine and three quarters, but he looked just as confused at the question as we felt, stating that there was no such thing. I asked if he knew of any train leaving at eleven o'clock, thinking that maybe the platform number was simply wrong, but at this the guard sighed in exasperation.

"I suppose you're trying to get to Hogwarts?" he asked, causing my heart to lift, believing that he knew where the train was. "Why does everyone want to waste my time today? Skinny little boy with messy dark hair just asked me the same question not five minutes ago." The guard walking away, shaking his head and I started to panic again.

I turned around and looked to see if maybe I would see something I'd missed previously, when suddenly, a girl who was leaning against a wall between platforms nine and ten disappeared _into_ the wall.

"Mum! Dad! Did you see that?" I asked excitedly, running over to the divide.

"No, see what?" Dad asked, confused.

"A girl just disappeared here," I said, standing in the same place she had been moments before. When nothing happened, I leaned against the wall like she had, and instead of meeting the resistance of the wall, I fell right through it onto the floor.

As soon as I had fallen, I scrambled up from the floor and looked around. I was on a new platform, and the sign above indicated that it was platform nine and three quarters. Mum and Dad came stumbling through the wall moments later, looking around in awe. I checked my watch and saw that I had only minutes left before I had to board the scarlet steam engine sitting in front of me.

"Mum, Dad…" I began, unsure how to finish that statement. "Bye," I finally said.

"Oh, goodbye sweetheart," Mum said, pulling me into a hug. When she released me, Dad gave me a hug as well, and then Mum insisted on hugging me once more.

"I promise I'll write to you," I said, knowing that they would probably have trouble adjusting to my letters being delivered my owls.

"And we'll write to you as well sweetie, just as soon as you send us an address we can reach you at," Dad added, and I grimaced to myself, knowing that they would probably not be impressed when they couldn't use the regular post.

"I guess I'd better get onto the train," I said finally, realizing that I was going to miss it if I didn't board now. To reinforce my point, the train's warning horn blew, indicating it would be leaving in a minute.

Mum and Dad followed me to the door of the train and helped me heave my trunk onto the landing. I jumped back off the train and hugged them each again. Then I climbed back onto the train and waved goodbye as the train pulled out of the station.

It was going to be strange, being so far away from them. I'd never lived away from home before. Though it wasn't as though Mum and Dad spent tons of time with me – I typically was left to my own devices – it would be weird to not sit down to dinner with them every night or get a goodnight hug from them each before bed.

When I could no longer see them anymore, I turned toward the hallway of compartments and my stomach filled with butterflies. As nervous as I was, I decided to swallow my fear and I straightened up and dragged my trunk down the hall, peering into the compartments, trying to find one that had room for me.

I finally came across a compartment that appeared to be filled with other first years, so I decided this would be the compartment to sit in. I opened the compartment door and asked if I could join them.

Of course, they said that was fine, so I heaved my trunk onto the rack above our heads with the help of a boy who introduced himself as Ernie Macmillan and sat down by the door. There were three other people in the compartment: Ernie, a boy named Neville Longbottom, and a girl named Lisa Turpin.

I discovered that all three of them came from magical families, but much to my surprise, none of them had learned to do any spells yet. In fact, Neville appeared terrified at the thought of trying to do magic at all. Lisa informed me that she had read some of the spell books we had been assigned, but that she hadn't managed to finish them. Ernie appeared more interested in playing a game called gobstones than anything else. When I revealed that I had read all the books we had been set and that I had been practicing some of the spells successfully on my own, Lisa immediately announced that I must be headed for Ravenclaw, the house that she was apparently hoping to end up in.

As great as I thought it would be to be recognized for my brains and be in Ravenclaw, I couldn't help but think that I would actually rather be sorted into Gryffindor. Gryffindor was the house for the brave and the noble and from what I've read, it appeared to produce the best witches and wizards. I didn't say any of this to Lisa, but instead I smiled and asked the two boys what house they were hoping to be sorted into.

Neville's face suddenly turned downcast. "I'd like to be put in Gryffindor, though I'll probably end up in Hufflepuff," he said sadly.

"Are you implying that there's something wrong with Hufflepuff?" Ernie asked, apparently offended.

"N-no, why?" Neville asked, suddenly extremely nervous.

"I'll have you know that all the members of my family have been Hufflepuffs for generations and I hope to uphold the noble family tradition," he said. "I think I'm going to go find someone who appreciates some Hufflepuff loyalty," he announced, standing up and leaving the compartment.

"I d-didn't mean an-anything. R-Really," Neville said, worried and clearly upset.

"Don't worry," Lisa said, "he's such a jerk, and he'll probably end up in Slytherin."

At Lisa's words, I had to try hard not to smile, not wanting to appear as though I approved of insults, since I knew that her words were meant as an insult.

We changed into our robes then, using the bathroom down the hall, figuring we ought to be wearing our uniform when we finally got to Hogwarts. I realized that I had no idea what time we would be arriving, and Lisa and Neville didn't know either.

After another hour or so, a smiling witch came by the compartment pushing a food trolley and asked if we wanted something to eat. I looked at the candy on the trolley and had no idea what any of it was. I decided to pass on the sweets, partly because I was a little apprehensive about not knowing what was on the cart, and partly because I had been raised by dentists. Lisa bought something called a licorice wand and Neville bought a chocolate frog.

When Neville opened his chocolate frog, it jumped out at him and he grabbed it and bit its head off as though it was perfectly normal. I hid my surprise and tried to arrange my features so that it seemed that I found this perfectly normal too.

I turned and looked out the window and as I watched the countryside fly by, I started to become genuinely excited, the butterflies that had been in the pit of my stomach now almost gone. I was heading towards Hogwarts.

A while later, Neville became aware that he had lost his toad, Trevor, and became extremely panicked. He searched the entirety of our compartment but couldn't find him.

"Oh, Gran's going to kill me," he muttered as he searched his trunk for the eighth time.

"Don't worry Neville, I'll help you find Trevor," I said, feeling that I should help in some way.

"Yeah, and I'll help too," Lisa said.

Neville thanked us and we decided we ought to split up and search the train. Neville went running down to the end of the train, but Lisa and I being a little smarter, decided we should check in each compartment. Lisa went right and I went left, and we travelled down the train checking inside each compartment, asking the people inside if they'd seen Trevor.

I was starting to get discouraged and I was hoping that Lisa had found Trevor, when I met up with Neville, who looked, if it was even possible, sadder than he had before.

I surmised that he had not found Trevor yet, so I encouraged him to come with me and ask around. I approached the next compartment, but Neville tried to stop me. "I've already asked them," he said, though I didn't really pay attention to this. I slid the compartment door open to reveal a couple of young boys.

"Has anyone seen a toad?"

I immediately noted two things about the boy sitting on the right. First, it was the same boy that had come into Madam Malkin's that day in Diagon Alley, who'd been arguing with his mother about robes. And secondly, he had his wand raised, as if he'd been about to do a spell.

Intrigued, I entered the compartment and took a seat, encouraging the boy to go on with the spell. I was partly interested to see what he was capable of, but mostly nervous that he would be better than me at magic. Not that I should be worrying about being the best yet. Just two nights ago, I'd been worried that I'd be at the bottom of the class.

When the spell failed, I immediately felt better about myself. I wanted to show off a little, so I told them about all the spells I'd learned so far, a tone of superiority in my voice. When the boy next to me introduced himself as Harry Potter, I felt myself knocked down a peg. Here I was, bragging about my magical prowess, when he'd already managed to block the darkest curse there was.

Starting to feel like I was blowing my chance at making friends with the two boys, I excused myself, claiming that I needed to keep helping Neville to find his toad. I wasn't sure what had made me babble like I had. I hadn't gotten carried away like that with Neville and Lisa.

When Neville and I returned to our compartment, Lisa was already there, and she'd also failed to find Trevor. Neville was disappointed, but he seemed to have come to terms with the loss of his toad. Or maybe he was just trying to hide his sorrow.


	5. My New Home

Chapter 5: My New Home

When the train slowly came to a stop at the station, the train hallway became filled with students all trying to get off the train. Lisa, Neville, and I waited until most of the students had cleared out before getting up and joining the rest of the school on the platform.

Once we were outside, we could hear someone calling out for the first years. We followed the sound of his voice over to the far side of the platform and found that it belonged to a very large man. He wasn't just big, he was huge. He looked like someone had cast an enlarging charm on him or something.

We all followed the man down a narrow path. I found it difficult not to trip and stumble, it was so dark all around and the path was so steep. I heard Neville sniffle beside me, and I knew he wasn't over the toad yet.

"Come on Neville, it'll be alright," I tried to reassure him. Unfortunately, it didn't seem to do much good.

Suddenly, the path opened up on the edge of a great lake we got our first sight of Hogwarts. It was across the lake, sitting on a high mountain: a vast castle, with turrets and towers, the windows lit, bright and inviting.

There were a bunch of boats sitting in the water, and I eagerly climbed into the nearest one which happened to already contain Harry and Ron, from the compartment earlier. Neville climbed in after me, but Lisa had to take a different boat because of the four-person limit.

Once everybody was aboard, the boats all started to move of their own accord, pushing us all through the water towards the great magnificent castle looming over us. As we approached, the large man called out to us to duck, and I ducked my head just in time, because the boats had reached the cliff and were being carried through an opening in the cliff face through a dark tunnel. The tunnel finally came out to a harbour, where we all got out of our boats and stepped onto the shore.

As we got out of the boats, the large man leading us found a toad following us and asked if it belonged to anyone. Neville excitedly ran forward to be reunited with Trevor, and I smiled, glad that things had ended on a happy note.

We headed up a passageway, following the large man, who had a large lamp, which seemed to be the only source of light. We finally reached the grass beside the castle and walked up the stone steps to the front doors. The large man raised his fist and knocked on the door three times.

The doors immediately swung open to reveal Professor McGonagall standing in the entrance, wearing either the exact same dark green cloak as she wore when she visited in the summer, or an identical one. I was relieved to see someone I recognized, and I smiled in her direction, but she was too busy with the large man – Hagrid, she called him - to notice me.

She pulled the door open more so that we could all get through and I stepped forward into the Entrance Hall of my new school. The room was all stone and there were torches on the walls that provided light for the room. I could see a marble staircase leading out of the hall that presumably led to the rest of the castle.

Professor McGonagall led us across the floor and into a small room off to the side. We all crammed in; though I'm sure we could have fit more comfortably if people weren't all squishing each other to get a better view. I could hear a loud hum of voices, so I assumed the rest of the school was already assembled in another room, probably the Great Hall based on what I'd read in _Hogwarts: A History_.

Professor McGonagall greeted the first years then, explaining about the sorting ceremony that was coming up. I knew all this from reading _Hogwarts: A History_, of course, and didn't need to be told again, but to my surprise, many of the students in the room seemed to be hanging on her every word, like it was the first they were hearing of this. Once again, I felt relief that I wasn't as behind as I'd thought I would be.

When Professor McGonagall finished explaining, she left and told us she would be returning shortly to bring us to the ceremony. About thirty seconds later, someone called out, "What the – ?"

I turned and saw the Hogwarts ghosts drifting into the room. Everyone seemed quite shocked, and I rolled my eyes again. I'd read about the ghosts of course, though it was quite fascinating to actually see them up close. They were a lot more solid-looking than I'd expected. They were transparent, of course, and had no actual matter to them, but I could still make out every feature of their appearance as if their bodies were really there.

Professor McGonagall returned then and kicked the ghosts out, instructing us to form a line and follow her into the Great Hall. I found myself directly behind Neville.

As we entered the Great Hall, I looked around for all the things that I had remembered from reading _Hogwarts: A History_. There were the four long house tables, the floating candles that illuminated the vast Hall, even the ceiling was the way the book had described it. When I noticed Neville looking up at the ceiling in awe, I whispered an explanation to him as to why it looked like it wasn't even there.

As we all assembled at the front of the Hall, I saw Professor McGonagall preparing the Sorting Hat on a four-legged stool. I remembered from my reading that the hat traditionally sang a song before the Sorting, so I waited expectantly.

It was a pretty generic song. The hat explained the various qualities associated with each house and sang about how it would be the one to decide where each of us would be placed. When it finished its song, the whole hall burst into applause. Professor McGonagall came forward again, now with a roll of parchment, and I suddenly became extremely nervous.

She called the first girl, Hannah Abbott, and the hat quickly declared her a Hufflepuff. As the names were called and it got dangerously close to the G's, my stomach started to clench and even though I'd had nothing to eat since breakfast, I felt like I might be sick. It wasn't that I was afraid of the sorting itself. Though I would like to be sorted into Gryffindor, Ravenclaw wouldn't be all that bad. I doubted I would end up in Hufflepuff or Slytherin, based on the qualities those two houses espoused. It was that I had a lingering fear of being the center of attention. Back in primary school, oral presentations had always been my least favorite thing. Having to stand up in front of the whole class, with them watching me and making fun of me behind their hands, was terrifying. And now I had to get up in front of the whole of Hogwarts. I knew it was different, but my fear was still present.

When Anthony Goldstein was sorted into Ravenclaw, I panicked because I thought I would be next, but someone named Gregory Goyle was called before me and I had a minute to compose myself before the Sorting Hat cried out "SLYTHERIN" and Professor McGonagall called my name.

I told myself to relax as I ran up the steps to the stool and put the hat over my head. I wanted to get this done right away before I lost my nerve. There was silence for a moment and then I heard a small voice in my ear. "Interesting, interesting, plenty of brains that's obvious, yes, a sure sign of a Ravenclaw, but what's this? I see there's bravery here and definitely the makings of a fine young Gryffindor, but Ravenclaw could really use a mind like this one." I smiled under the hat as it praised my mind. I always liked it when my brain was recognized as a quality rather than made a mockery of. The hat noticed my sudden rush of pride and it made a note that pride was certainly a Gryffindor quality.

"Alright then, I suppose you ought to be in – GRYFFINDOR!" the hat finally called out to the entire hall. I jumped off the stool and handed the hat to the next student to be sorted – Daphne Greengrass, and I went to sit at the applauding Gryffindor table, eager for the next student to become the subject of everyone's attention.

I watched merrily as Neville became a Gryffindor as well, and though he forgot to remove the Sorting Hat before he came to sit down, I didn't laugh, but congratulated him when he finally sat down at the table next to me. Ernie Macmillan, the boy I had met at the beginning of the train ride became a Hufflepuff just as he'd wished.

When Harry Potter's name was called, the tension in the hall became tangible. I suppose everyone was eager for him to end up in their house because of his fame. The hat took a significantly long time deciding where to place him, but it finally shouted "GRYFFINDOR!" and the whole table burst into the loudest applause anyone had yet received.

When Lisa's turn came, I sat up a little straighter and when she was announced to be a Ravenclaw, I clapped along with the Ravenclaw table and tried to catch her eye to smile, but she didn't turn my way. It was too bad she wasn't in Gryffindor – she'd have made a great friend – but I was glad she got the house she'd wanted.

After Lisa, the other boy from the train, Ron, was sorted into Gryffindor, and then the last boy, Blaise Zabini, was sent to Slytherin.

When the Sorting was over, the Headmaster, Albus Dumbledore, rose to make a speech. It was one of the strangest speeches I'd ever heard, and I wondered if he was completely sane. All the books I'd read about him said he was the wisest and smartest wizard in all of history, but would the most intelligent man alive really use the word 'blubber'?

Suddenly, all the empty plates and bowls sitting in front of me were filled with food, by magic of course, and everyone began to eat. I helped myself to some roast beef and potatoes and made sure to take peas and carrots, because Mum and Dad would want me to eat my vegetables. The older boy next to me introduced himself as Percy Weasley, and I guessed that he was the brother Ron had been complaining to his mother about – the one who'd been made a prefect. When Percy informed me that he was a prefect, my suspicions were conformed. I decided he was responsible, since the school had given him a position of authority, and I started to talk to him about classes.

"Potions should be very interesting," I said to Percy.

"Oh yes, Professor Snape teaches potions. He's a great teacher, but a little surly. He wants the Defense Against the Dark Arts post pretty badly," Percy replied.

"And I've been practicing a few basic charms, but I don't believe I've gotten very far," I continued. "Though I've noticed that most of the other first years haven't seemed to have practiced much at all, so perhaps I'm more advanced than I'd thought."

I chatted with Percy for awhile, and then talked with Neville for a bit, as he was seated on my other side.

When dinner was over, the Headmaster got up again to address the students and then dismissed us so that we could go up to our dormitories. As Percy was a prefect, he took charge of the first year Gryffindors, leading us up the stairs and through the castle to the seventh floor, where our dormitories were housed.

When we finally reached the dormitories, Percy gave the password to the portrait of a relatively overweight lady wearing a pink dress. The portrait swung open to reveal the common room – which was filled with armchairs and tables and had a lovely couch by the fire. Everything was decorated in scarlet and gold; those begin the Gryffindor colors.

Percy told us that the girls' dormitories were through the door on the left, so I followed the other girls through it and up a spiral staircase into a room with a plaque on it reading _First Years_. The dormitory was a circular room with five four-poster beds that had deep scarlet curtains hanging from them. I found that my trunk was already at the foot of my bed, so I went right to that bed and sat down, very tired. While the other girls all started talking and introducing each other, I got dressed in my pyjamas and went straight to bed, too exhausted to try to join in a conversation about cute boys and whether the uniform restrictions would allow for painted nails.


	6. First Day

Chapter 6: First Day

When I woke up the next morning, there was only one other girl still in the dormitory. She introduced herself as Lavender Brown. She told me that two of the other girls in our dorm, Sally-Anne Perks and Lily Moon, had woken up very early and left right away.

I asked about the last girl, since there were five girls sleeping in our dorm, and Lavender told me she was just in the bathroom. I began to gather my things and I got ready for the day. When the last girl, Parvati Patil, emerged from the bathroom, she said hi, and then she and Lavender left for breakfast, leaving me alone in the dorm. I vaguely wondered if maybe it had been a mistake not to participate in the conversation the previous night. Had I already alienated my roommates so far that they wouldn't want to be friends?

I decided it didn't matter. Based on their conversations, they weren't really the kinds of people I would get along with. Lisa Turpin and I had gotten on pretty well on the train, so I decided that she would be my first attempt at a proper friend.

Once I was ready and had piled all my books into my bag, I headed down to the Great Hall. I still hadn't received my timetable, and I wasn't sure what books I would need today, so I decided to bring everything. My bag was quite heavy.

When I got to the Great Hall, I sat down next to Neville, who was looking rather lonely. All the other first year Gryffindor boys were talking together a little way down the table, but for some reason Neville had been excluded. I realized that Neville also would be a good candidate for a friend, because he and I had that in common – being shunned by our classmates.

"Are you excited to be starting classes?" I asked him. I certainly was.

Neville, on the other hand, did not appear to be looking forward to classes. "No, not at all," he replied. "I'm going to be rubbish, I'm sure of it."

I tried to cheer Neville up by telling him he would do great, but I don't think I did a very good job. I found myself a little discouraged. If Neville didn't enjoy school, then maybe he wasn't a great choice for a friend. We wouldn't have too much to talk about with school out of the picture.

Once breakfast was over, Professor McGonagall came around and handed out our timetables. I glanced at it quickly to see where I would be going and saw, to my delight, that my first class was History of Magic. Since I didn't yet know my way around the castle, I found a prefect and asked her where the classroom was. She gave me some directions, and after thanking her, I led Neville out of the Great Hall to go to class.

History of Magic turned out to be quite fascinating. I had already read the whole textbook, but Professor Binns provided details that weren't actually in the book. I made sure to copy down very thorough notes since I was sure I wouldn't remember everything by the end of the year when I would have to write an exam. I noticed that I was the only one taking notes, and I sighed to myself. I suppose if the entire rest of the class wanted to fail that was their own choice.

The other really exciting thing about History of Magic was that Professor Binns was a ghost. He didn't mention how old he was, but it was clear that he had been dead for quite a long time, which meant that some of the history he was teaching, he would have lived through! I was very much looking forward to getting a first-hand account of some of the events that I'd read about in my textbook. It was quite a smart move, on the Headmaster's part, employing a ghost for this particular subject, I thought.

After History of Magic, we had Herbology, which was in the greenhouses. I followed my classmates in the hopes that they knew where they were going, since I didn't see a prefect anywhere around. Neville actually enjoyed Herbology, and I actually saw him smile, something I hadn't seen yet all day.

After Herbology, it was time for lunch, so we all returned to the Great Hall. I decided that it was time to see about making some real friends, so I scoped out the Ravenclaw table until I spotted Lisa Turpin sitting amongst some of our Ravenclaw classmates and went over to join them.

"Hi Lisa," I said merrily, taking a seat across the table from her. I didn't know the names of the rest of the girls yet, so I avoided that little awkwardness by smiling at them each in turn. "How's your first day been? So far, I've had History of Magic and Herbology, and I have to say they were both simply fascinating."

"Uh, Hermione, what are you doing?" Lisa frowned, glancing around, as if to make sure nobody was watching.

"What do you mean?" I asked. "I just thought I'd come over for a chat, eat some lunch." I grabbed a sandwich from a platter in the middle of the table and put it on my plate.

"Hermione, you can't sit here," Lisa said in a hushed voice.

"Why not?" I asked, looking around to the other first years. They were all nodding their heads along with Lisa and I felt like I'd swallowed a brick.

"You're in Gryffindor," Lisa explained. "You need to eat at the Gryffindor table. You can't eat over here at Ravenclaw."

"What's the big deal?" I frowned. "I'm sure lots of people eat with their friends at other house's tables."

"Hermione," Lisa said gently. "Look, yesterday was fun, on the train and all, but now that we've been sorted, things are going to have to be different. I'm in Ravenclaw and you're in Gryffindor. So, I need to be friends with the Ravenclaws, and you need to be friends with the Gryffindors."

"But all my roommates want to talk about is boys and nail polish," I protested. "You actually have an interest in school."

Lisa shrugged. "I'm sorry Hermione, I don't know what to tell you. Maybe you should have told the hat you wanted to be in Ravenclaw."

"I don't think that's really how the hat works," I muttered.

"Either way," Lisa said. "You've got to go."

Reluctantly, I rose from the table and walked away. A multitude of emotions were running through me. I was feeling embarrassed, for the way that the Ravenclaws had rejected me. I was feeling lonely, because the only like-minded people at this school had made it clear that I couldn't be friends with them. And I was feeling uncomfortable, because I could feel the eyes of the Ravenclaws on me as I walked away, and I knew that they were gossiping about me.

I glanced over at the Gryffindor table, trying to decide where to sit, but ultimately decided just to go to the library and study instead. This lunch period had been stressful enough. I just needed to wind down by going over my notes from my first two classes again.

After lunch was Transfiguration. Professor McGonagall taught Transfiguration and it was the first class where we got to try casting actual spells. We were supposed to be turning a match into a needle. I hadn't practiced this at home, but about halfway through the class I was successful, and Professor McGonagall showed the whole class. Nobody else had been able to do the transfiguration so I smiled smugly, glad to be back in my element, which was doing well in school. At least one thing hadn't changed.

After Transfiguration was Charms. After my success in transfiguration, my confidence was back up, and I decided to try my hand at making friends again. I took a seat with Lavender and Parvati, thinking that maybe I could befriend them by showing them how much I already knew about Charms.

"Hey girls," I greeted them, interrupting whatever conversation they'd been having.

"Oh," Parvati said, looking up at me. "Hi Hermione. Are you going to join us?"

"Yeah, I thought I might," I nodded.

"We were just talking about Seamus," Lavender said with a giggle. "Don't you think he has the most adorable little ears?"

"Oh," I said, feeling completely out of my element. "Sure, I guess so." I didn't really have an opinion, but it was clear that I was supposed to agree. "So, are you excited about our first Charms class? What charm do you think we'll start with? Personally, I'm hoping either for the levitation charm, or the unlocking charm. Those are my best two so far. I can do the wand-lighting charm as well, but my light isn't as strong as I'd like it to be. Of course, that may all change once Professor Flitwick teaches the lesson. Maybe I've been doing it wrong this whole time."

"Yeah," Lavender said. "Right. So anyway, Parvati…"

I sagged my shoulders as Lavender turned her back to me and continued her conversation with the other girl. Clearly, I needed to work on my conversation skills. I suspected that my problem was the way I had a habit of rambling when I was nervous. I needed to stop talking about myself so much and learn to ask more questions.

In the end, Charms class was a bit of a letdown. We didn't cast any actual spells; Professor Flitwick simply began to explain the various theories we would be covering that year.

When classes were over for the day, I decided that I'd had enough of trying and failing to make friends. I was exhausted, and all I wanted to do was relax. So, I headed to the library yet again, and started to go over my notes from the second half of the day.

When I'd finished revising, I decided to get up and explore the shelves. Since it was only our first day, the Professors had decided not to give us any homework. It had been a little disappointing at first, but it did give me time to explore, so I didn't mind too much.

I spent almost two hours just walking through the library, learning the organizational system, where the different sections were located, and randomly pulling books off of shelves to get a feel for all the different topics that were available to me to read.

By the time dinner rolled around, I'd selected two volumes to borrow and brought them up to the front desk, where the librarian was shuffling through some paperwork.

"Excuse me?" I said to get her attention. "I'd like to check out these books."

"First year?" the librarian snapped, grabbing the books away from me and flipping to the back, where the slip for keeping track of loans was kept. "I have very strict rules about borrowing books," she said. "No eating near my books. No writing in my books. No taking my books into the bathroom, even if they're just inside your bag. Never carry ink in the same bag as my books. Never fold over the corner of a page to keep your place – if you need a bookmark, I can provide you with one."

"Oh, don't worry about that," I assured the librarian. "I have about twenty bookmarks back in my trunk. I'll take very good care of these."

"See that you do, Miss…?"

"Hermione Granger," I gave her my name for the loan cards, and she scribbled it down, adding a stamp with the current date.

"You have two weeks before these are due back," the librarian declared. "If they've been marred in any way, you'll find your book borrowing privileges revoked faster than you can say 'library'."

"Understood," I said seriously. Though her warnings were wasted on me – I would never bring a library book back in less than pristine condition – I respected her need to ensure I took proper care of the books. I appreciated her rigorous and severe attitude in that regard.


	7. It's Not So Easy, Making Friends

Chapter 7: It's Not So Easy, Making Friends

When I awoke the next morning, I found that Lily and Sally-Anne were getting dressed, so I hurried to get ready and joined them as they headed down to the Great Hall.

"Isn't it a lovely morning?" I asked, coming up behind them.

"Oh, sure I guess so," Lily shrugged. She pointed out the window. "If you like rainy days."

I felt my face heat up in embarrassment. I hadn't even checked to see what the weather was like. I'd just been trying to make small talk.

"So, it looks like we've got Defence Against the Dark Arts first thing," I said conversationally. "That should be interesting."

"Oh yes, I've been looking forward to that class since we got our schedules yesterday morning," Sally-Anne agreed.

Excited to finally have someone interested in a class, I jumped on this.

"I wonder what we'll start with," I said eagerly. "There's curses and counter-curses, hexes and jinxes, defence against dark creatures…"

"I just can't believe that we're going to have _Defence Against the Dark Arts _with _Harry Potter _in the room," Lily said, going starry eyed.

I frowned. What was the big deal? What did it matter if Harry was in this class in particular? "But he's been in all our other classes," I pointed out. "Why would Defence Against the Dark Arts be any different from Herbology?"

Lily and Sally-Anne both craned their heads around to look at me like I had two heads. "Hermione, don't you realize who he is?" Lily asked emphatically.

I shrugged. "Well sure," I nodded. I'd read about Harry. I knew his story just like everyone else.

"So, then you know that he's probably got tons of secret hidden powers," Lily went on. "And if there's a class where he might reveal something like that, Defence Against the Dark Arts is the place."

"Hmm," I hummed. "I don't know. I mean, he was a baby at the time. I don't think he necessarily did anything to stop the curse. I think He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named messed the curse up."

Sally-Anne and Lily both rolled their eyes. "You don't understand anything, do you?" Sally-Anne groaned, making me feel small and insignificant. "He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named was insanely powerful. He'd killed hundreds of people, and tons of witches and wizards had tried to stop him. He didn't just 'mess up'. He was stopped."

I shrugged. If Sally-Anne and Lily were going to insist that a one-year-old somehow had secret powers I wasn't going to argue. And they did make a good point. I'd just entered the wizarding world. Sure, I'd read a few books, but there were still tons I didn't know. I shouldn't be assuming that I had all the knowledge.

"Anyway, what I can't understand is why _Harry Potter_ has been spending all his time hanging around with _Ron Weasley_," Lily said as we reached the Great Hall and took seats near the front of the room. Harry and Ron were seated about halfway down the table, and Lily looked at Ron with a look of condescension.

"Why?" I couldn't help but ask. "What's wrong with Ron?"

Lily shrugged. "Oh, nothing, I guess. But it's not like that family is anything special. We'd all just figured that he'd align himself with the most prominent wizarding families once he'd arrived. Instead he's hanging out with second-hand Weasley."

I frowned. It was obvious to me that Ron's family had money problems. My first clue had been the scene I'd witnessed at Madam Malkin's, and now Lily's comment confirmed it. But it was no reason to look down on someone. It wasn't Ron's fault his family had less money than others, the same way it wasn't my fault I'd been born into a non-magical family.

"Yeah," Sally-Anne agreed. "But hey, I've got to give Weasley props. Whatever he's doing, he should keep doing it. He's already the second most popular kid in first year, second to Harry of course. He sure does know what he's doing. I might have to take notes."

At this, my mind raced into overdrive at the possibilities. If I wanted to make friends, I needed to raise my social standing. And if Ron had made himself the second most popular first year just by hanging out with Harry, then there was only one thing for it. I needed to become friends with them too.

I tried sitting with Harry and Ron in Defence Against the Dark Arts, but Lily and Sally-Anne claimed the seats before I had a chance, so I ended up sitting with Neville. I tried again in History of Magic, but they took seats in the far back corner, and I just couldn't bring myself to sit so far away from the front. It was hard enough paying attention in the front row when the rest of the class was goofing off or falling asleep.

I told myself that lunch would be a good time to re-introduce myself, but they were sitting with Seamus and Dean and I decided that it would be best to wait until it was just the two of them.

Finally, I got fed up, and just came up and joined them in the hallway as we were walking from the Great Hall up to the Charms classroom on the second floor.

"I don't believe it," Ron was saying. "There's no way muggles actually pay money to watch a bunch of guys run around and kick a ball. Dean's having me on."

"No really Ron," Harry insisted. "Dean's right, it's called football and it's really quite popular."

"I understand your disbelief, Ron," I said, jumping into the conversation without invitation. "It's always baffled me how people can get so excited about sports. It doesn't take brains to run around a field for an hour or two."

Ron turned and gave me a haughty look. "I never said I didn't like sports. I'm a Chudley Cannons fan all the way. I just don't see how this… football… can compare to something like Quidditch."

"Quidditch?" I frowned. The was word unfamiliar to me.

"Merlin, don't you know anything?" Ron cried. "It's only the best wizarding sport ever invented! Here's a thought, you like to read, don't you? Why don't you scram and go read up about Quidditch? Learn something that's actually useful."

It felt like a slap in the face. I immediately stopped walking, letting Harry and Ron get ahead of me while I processed what had just happened.

Ron had been very patronizing, but then again, I had just inserted myself into the conversation. Perhaps I'd thrown him. The real problem was that he'd known about something that I didn't. I'd been blind sighted when he's brought up the topic of 'quidditch'. Ron was right. What I really needed to do was go to the library after class and read up on the subject. Then I'd be ready for my next conversation attempt with the two boys.

Over the course of the rest of the week, I continued to try to make friends with my housemates. Unfortunately, Lavender and Parvati seemed more interested in talking about boys than anything else – a conversation topic I was unable to participate in for longer than a few seconds. Sally-Anne and Lily were alright company, but I could tell that they got quickly annoyed with my presence when I sat with them.

Harry and Ron were still my primary targets, but it was so hard trying to befriend a couple of boys. I didn't share any of their interests and their mannerisms were so foreign to me. One day I saw them punching each other's fists, and I couldn't understand why they would undertake such a violent action when they appeared to be in such a good mood.

I ended up spending a good deal of my time alone in the library, reading and revising. As the level of homework started to pick up, Neville started joining me more and more often. I didn't mind the company, until I realized how easy it was for Neville to drive himself into a state when he didn't know the answer to something. It made me anxious for him, which was an added burden I just didn't need.

On Friday, we had our first potions class with Professor Snape. I'd heard a lot of different things about our potions Professor. Percy had said he was a good teacher, but others had said that he was prejudiced against Gryffindor house, which made me nervous. I was anxious to impress him and made sure that I was extremely prepared when I sat down at one of the desks in the dungeons.

It was immediately obvious that Professor Snape did not like Harry. Almost as soon as he noticed the boy in the class, he started bombarding him with potions-related questions. Eager to make a good impression, my hand shot into the air when the first question was posed. When Harry didn't know the answer, I waved my hand around for good measure, hoping the Professor would call on me and give me a chance to show off my knowledge.

Instead, he posed a second question, again one I knew the answer to. I wondered whether he'd even seen my hand raised and stretched it as high as it could go. It was started to get tired, but I refused to lower it.

When Harry again didn't have an answer, a Professor Snape came up with a third question. It was a trick question, one of my favorites. The Professor's attention was so completely focused on Harry though, and I needed him to see that I knew the answer, so I stood up out of my chair, my hand still raised, as I tried to get his attention.

Finally, Harry suggested that Professor Snape call on me and my heart leapt as I imagined all the points I might win for Gryffindor for being so prepared. Unfortunately, Professor Snape was not interested in having me answer. He ordered me to sit and then proceeded to give the correct answers himself.

I couldn't understand it. Why wouldn't he have let me answer. I knew the answers, and even if I hadn't, wasn't the point of school to have us try? Why would he ask the questions if he was just going to give us the answers himself anyway?

I didn't bother to write down the answers. I'd known them, and in fact, if I'd been called on, I could have gone into even more detail than Professor Snape had in his brief explanations of each of the three questions.

Glancing around the room, I noticed that quite a few people were snickering behind their hands, and I felt bad for Harry. It wasn't his fault he hadn't known the answers. He'd been raised in the muggle world and probably hadn't had time to read ahead like me.

As I sent a scowl in Lavender and Parvati's direction for mocking Harry though, I noticed that they weren't laughing and pointing at him. They were laughing and pointing at me. When they saw that I was watching, Lavender put her hand up in the air and started waving it around, making a face that looked like she was constipated. Parvati dissolved into a fit of giggles, the two only stopping when Professor Snape spun around and gave them a deathly glare.

I felt my face heat up in humiliation as I realized that they were making fun of me. As I looked around at everyone snickering and whispering behind their textbooks, I realized that the whole class was laughing at me, and my face went from faintly pink to red as a tomato. I sunk a little in my chair, wishing I was anywhere but here.

Thankfully, Professor Snape started the actual lesson then, and everybody suddenly became very focused on notetaking, which meant that they weren't looking at me anymore. I swallowed as I tried to calm my nerves. My whole body was shaking, and my pulse was thundering. But I was in class, and I needed to pay attention, so I pushed it all away and focused on what needed to be done.


	8. Better Off Alone

Chapter 8: Better Off Alone

I spent the rest of my day with my head down, trying not to draw attention to myself. Thankfully, we had Friday afternoons off, so I found myself a quiet spot in the library and kept out of everyone's way. My hope was that if I waited long enough, everyone would forget, or someone else would do something more embarrassing, and the heat would be off me.

I waited until the vey last minute before curfew to head back to Gryffindor Tower. I wasn't insane and had no intention of being caught in the corridors after hours, but I also wanted to postpone my return to the dormitory as long as possible.

As I climbed the stairs, I convinced myself that I had nothing to worry about. Nobody was going to be making fun of me now. It had happened, and it was over. I'd moved on, and so had everyone else, I was sure.

I pushed open the door to my dormitory to find Lavender, Parvati, Sally-Anne, and Lily all huddled on Lavender's bed. They were clearly giggling about something, so I went over and asked what was going on, hoping to be allowed to join in.

"Ooh Professor Snape, pick me, pick me!" Lavender cried, shooting her hand up into the air and waving it around like an American with a foam finger at a baseball game.

I felt my spirits plummet.

"_I_ know the answer. Please call on me. If you don't call on me, I'll _die_," Parvati added, much to the glee of the other girls.

"I know _all_ the answers, because I spend all my time reading textbooks in the library, and have no life" Lily jumped in.

"That's not fair!" I exclaimed. "I do so have a life. And friends." It was a feeble argument, but I couldn't just stand there letting them disparage me.

"What, you mean Longbottom?" Lavender challenged me, getting up from her bed so that she was facing me. "Sure, if you can call that a friendship. Looks to me more like you just do your homework next to each other. Do you do anything besides homework, like ever?"

"Sure I do," I defended myself, taking a step back. Lavender was starting to crowd me and I could feel myself starting to shake.

"I mean besides read for fun, you little bookworm," Lavender said, advancing on me.

Suddenly, in my mind, her face morphed into that of Nancy Hummel and I was right back on the playground of my old primary school.

_"__What's that you've got there?" Nancy demanded, grabbing my book out of my hands. It was the autobiography of an accomplished female scientist that my parents had gotten me for Christmas._

_"__Just a book," I replied, reaching to grab the book back. But Nancy held it up high, and because she was just that much taller than me, I couldn't reach it._

_"__Come on, give it back!" I cried, jumping in an effort to wrench the book from her hands._

_"__What do you think, girls?" Nancy asked, looking to her friends, who surrounded us. "Should I give the bookworm back her book?"_

_Her friends started laughing and shaking their heads, and Nancy laughed along with them. Then she tossed the book into a nearby puddle._

_"__Go and get it," she said to me, pointing at the now ruined book. _

_Humiliated, I went and picked the book up out of the puddle, holding it out so that the water could run off the pages._

_"__I bet she's going to take it home and blow-dry out the pages," Nancy laughed as she and her friends turned away from me. "What a nerd."_

"Don't call me a bookworm!" I cried, tears springing to my eyes. I spun around and crossed the landing to our shared bathroom, shutting and locking the door behind me.

For all my efforts, for all my attempts at making friends, I'd failed. I was right back where I'd been when I was in the muggle world. Whether it was Nancy Hummel or Lavender Brown, someone was always going to mock and make fun of me. Maybe there was something about me that repelled other kids.

Professors seemed to like me well enough. Not Professor Snape, but Professor McGonagall and Professor Flitwick had already taken quite a liking to me. And Madam Pince had taken to smiling at me whenever I entered the library.

I sank to the floor and pulled my knees up to my chin, wrapping my arms around my legs. Why did girls have to be so mean? Lavender and Parvati, Sally-Anne and Lily… why couldn't just one of them have been nice to me, tried to include me, stuck up for me back there? Neville wasn't like that. In fact, none of the boys here had made fun of me like the girls had. Maybe that was the answer. Maybe what I needed were guy friends. Maybe I just wasn't the type of girl that bonded well with girls.

Gathering myself up off the floor, I switched on the shower and began to get ready for bed, hoping that by the time I was finished in the bathroom, the other girls would have gone to sleep. I'd face them in the morning, once I'd had a chance to sleep away all my emotions. And when I did, it would be with my head held high.

Over the course of the next week, I really tried to make friends with some of the Gryffindor boys. Unfortunately, all any of them seemed to want to talk about was flying and Quidditch, a topic I couldn't relate to in the slightest. We started flying lessons that week, and I'd hoped that maybe I'd find that it wasn't as bad as I'd expected, but after Neville injured himself and had to go to the hospital wing, I knew that flying was never going to be my thing.

The night after that first flying lesson, I overheard some Slytherin boys challenge Harry and Ron to an after-hours wizard's duel. I was appalled that they would suggest something like that, and even more appalled that Harry and Ron agreed. I tried to intervene, but Harry and Ron wouldn't listen to me.

I was extremely annoyed with them both, and even more so when I got stuck tagging along on their foolish mission after getting locked out of the common room. By the time we'd returned, having just barely escaped from the three-headed-dog, I was furious. If this was what friendship with Harry and Ron was going to look like, I didn't want any part of it. I would sooner spend my days in the library with Neville than risking expulsion.

So, the next day, instead of trying to sit with Harry and Ron, or even with Seamus and Dean, I sat alone at the end of the table in the Great Hall and composed a letter to my parents, realizing that it had been far too long and that I owed them a letter.

_Dear Mum and Dad,_

_How are you? I'm quite enjoying Hogwarts. I made a couple of friends on the train, Neville and Lisa, though Lisa is not in my house, so I don't really talk to her anymore. _

I decided not to mention the fact that she'd outright told me we couldn't be friends because of our different houses. Mum and Dad didn't need all the details about my complete failure in the friendship department.

_My classes are quite fun. I'm very good at Transfiguration and Charms, and I'm the only one who pays attention during History of Magic. I do enjoy brewing Potions, but the teacher, Professor Snape, doesn't seem to like me very much. Professor McGonagall does though, you remember her? She was the one who came to visit us in the summer. She gave me five points because I knew what a Switching Spell was._

_The librarian, Madam Pince, is also very nice. I come to the library almost every day so she sees me often and she recognizes me now and smiles when I arrive. I'm studying hard, as always, so don't worry about that. I hope to hear from you soon._

_Love,_

_Hermione_

I left out anything about my dormmates, or Harry and Ron and the incident the previous night. Mum and Dad would only worry if I told them any of that, and there was nothing for them to be worried about. So instead, I focused my letter on my classes and left it at that.

When I was finished writing my letter, I left the Great Hall and headed for the owlery to borrow one of the school owls, since I didn't have one of my own. As I watched the owl fly away with my letter, I hoped my parents had had enough time to come to terms with everything and that they would be as excited as I was that I was attending Hogwarts.

At the end of that second week, Professor McGonagall came to find me in the library.

"Good afternoon, Hermione," she greeted me. I looked up from my potions essay, surprised to see the Transfiguration teacher so far from the Transfiguration classroom.

"Good afternoon, Professor McGonagall," I returned the greeting. "Can I help you with something?"

"I thought we might go back to my office and have a little chat," Professor McGonagall said. "Talk about how you're settling in."

"Sure, I guess so," I agreed readily. My potions essay could wait, it wasn't due until next week.

Professor McGonagall's office wasn't far from the library. When we arrived, she took a seat behind her desk and gestured to the chairs in front of it, indicating that I should sit down. She offered me some tea, which I accepted, figuring it was polite.

"So, Hermione, how are things going?" she asked, taking a sip of her tea.

"Things are good," I said. "I simply adore Transfiguration of course." I earned a smile with this statement. "And History of Magic is truly fascinating. I'm quite good at Charms as well."

"Professor Flitwick is very impressed with you," Professor McGonagall stated.

I beamed with pride at this statement.

"You are certainly excelling in all your classes," Professor McGonagall commended me. "It is always a concern that there could be an adjustment period for our muggle-born students during the first month, but you've adapted quite quickly."

"I'm vey adaptable," I agreed.

"I have noticed that you don't spend a great deal of time with your classmates," Professor McGonagall said then. "You sit apart from the others at meals, you spend your free time studying in the library. I'm worried that you aren't socializing enough."

"I socialize," I frowned, not liking the direction our conversation was taking. "Neville studies with me sometimes, and I don't always eat alone."

"It's true that you and Mr. Longbottom spend some time together, but you don't appear to do much more than homework," Professor McGonagall noted. "Your other classmates are all starting to form solid friendships, and I would hate for you to be left out of that because you waited too long to integrate yourself."

Too late, I thought to myself bitterly.

"Professor McGonagall," I said, choosing my words carefully. "I appreciate your concern, but I'm just happier on my own. If you don't mind, I do have a potions essay to write, so if we're done here…?"

I stood, to indicate that I was through with the conversation, and Professor McGonagall sighed.

"My door is always open, Hermione," she said as I made my way to the door. "If there's ever anything you want to talk about, you can come to me."

I nodded and slipped out into the corridor. I couldn't believe that Professor McGonagall had ambushed me like that. How was it any of her business what I did with my free time? So long as I was doing well in classes, she had no right to interfere in my life.

Reluctantly, I decided that for my own good, and for the sake of keeping Professor McGonagall off my back, I would endeavor to at least make it look like I had friends. I would sit near my classmates at mealtimes, try to spend some of my time in the common room instead of always being in the library, and hopefully that would do the trick.


	9. Twelfth Birthday

Chapter 9: Twelfth Birthday

The morning of my birthday, I awoke to a beautiful day. The sun was shining, it was warm, and we had Transfiguration class first thing. I rose before any of my dormmates awoke and dressed and showered quickly. I didn't feel like dealing with them that particular morning, and instead hurried to get down to the Great Hall before any of them could ruin my special day with an insult.

Content to be alone, I settled into a nice breakfast. I opened up the library book I was currently reading, _A History of Wandmaking_, and began to butter my toast. At some point, Neville joined me, taking a seat across the table and frantically trying to finish his essay for Professor Snape.

"Oh, by the way, happy birthday," he added, about halfway through his meal. "It's today, isn't it?"

"That's right," I nodded. I tried not to be disappointed that the only person at Hogwarts that I'd told about my birthday had almost forgotten it.

The mail came, and I waited eagerly for an owl to bring me a letter or package from home. Mum and Dad hadn't answered my letter yet, and I was hoping it was because they were waiting for my birthday to send something. When the last of the owls cleared out of the Great Hall and I hadn't received anything, I wondered if maybe they hadn't figured out how the wizarding postage system worked and decided to write them a letter at lunch explaining it.

As always, I was very excited for Transfiguration class. It was rapidly becoming my favorite class at Hogwarts, and I also happened to be exceptionally good at it. I was a little later than usual arriving to class, as I'd gotten quite caught up in my book about wandmaking, and the only seat left was next to Sally-Anne and Lily. Figuring it was better than sitting with Lavender and Parvati, I took a seat, ignoring the two girls, and preparing myself for class.

"Neville told us it was your birthday today," Lily said as we waited for Professor McGonagall.

"Why would he do that?" I frowned. Neville knew I didn't get along with my roommates. I figured he was probably just hoping that it would bring us together, them celebrating my birthday. Not that that would ever have worked.

Lily shrugged.

"Lily, don't you think it would be _so_ lame not to have anyone to celebrate your birthday with?" Sally-Anne asked, pointedly not looking at me.

"_So _lame," Lily agreed. "But then, some people are just so uncool, nobody would want to be friends with them."

I had to bite my lip to prevent myself from crying right there in class. It was bad enough that I didn't have anyone to celebrate my birthday with. Not only did my one 'friend' almost forget to even wish me a happy birthday, my parents seemed to have forgotten too. I didn't need to be reminded by Lily and Sally-Anne that nobody liked me.

Professor McGonagall arrived, and I immediately put up my hand.

"Yes, Hermione?" Professor McGonagall called on me.

"I need to go to the bathroom," I said in a rush.

Professor McGonagall nodded. "Go ahead," she said.

As soon as I'd passed through the door into the corridor, I could feel the tears forming. I hated missing class, but I couldn't stay sitting next to the two girls after the way they'd been making fun of me. I just needed a minute to clear my head.

Because I hate to lie, I made my way to the nearest bathroom and sat myself down on one of the toilets, dropping my head into my hands as more tears started to fall. It wasn't my fault I was so unpopular. I'd tried making friends, but nobody had wanted to be friends with me. There had to be something wrong with me.

Once I'd cried away all my tears, I decided that I needed to stop feeling sorry for myself. I got out a quill and some parchment, and I began to compose a letter to my parents.

_Dear Mum and Dad,_

_It's my birthday today! I'm sure you didn't forget. You probably just couldn't find an owl, which isn't surprising since you don't live in a magical castle with an owlery like me. I probably forgot to tell you though, that there are wizards working in the muggle post offices that will intercept any wizarding mail. So, all you need to do is mail me your letters like normal and address them to Hogwarts, and the undercover mail wizards will see that they get to the right place._

_Classes are going well. Transfiguration is definitely my favorite. It's very logical and requires perfect precision, which as you know is one of my specialities. _

_History of Magic is quite possibly my second favorite class. There's obviously no practical component there, but we have to do a ton of reading. It's fascinating to see the comparisons between muggle and wizarding history._

_My least favorite class is probably Herbology, but don't tell Professor Sprout. It's all about growing magical plants, which is all well and good, except that it requires a lot of manual labor without much reward. And it's not like it takes special skill to water a plant._

_I've also been doing some light reading on the side, so that I can be sure to keep up with the students born into wizarding families. Right now, I'm reading about the history of wandmaking, and I have to say it's fascinating. Did you know that witches and wizards used to do magic without wands? One day some old wizard fashioned the first wand to better channel his magic, and eventually, wands became so widespread and so heavily relied upon that the ability to do wandless magic became something only the most advanced wizards could do. So now my goal is to one day master wandless magic. If the witches and wizards of old could do it, why not me?_

_Looking forward to hearing from you soon._

_Love,_

_Hermione_

When I finished the letter, I put it away in my bag with my other things and returned to class. I wasn't going to skip the whole lesson – that would be incredibly irresponsible. Then, at lunch, I skipped eating in the Great Hall and instead headed up to the owlery to mail my letter. With any luck, it would reach my parents today, and I would have a response from them by tomorrow.

That evening, I studied in the library until about an hour before curfew and then headed up to the common room for the remainder of the night. My plan had been to find a cozy armchair in a corner somewhere and keep reading my book. However, when I arrived, I noticed Harry and Ron playing a game of wizard's chess and became intrigued.

I'd never played chess before. I'd always wanted to, but Mum and Dad didn't play, and I'd never had any friends to play against. It was a game of logic, so I knew that if I ever did play, I would undoubtedly excel at it.

Wandering over to Harry and Ron, I decided to try my luck at friend-making one more time.

"Hello boys," I greeted them. "Playing a game of wizard's chess, I see?"

The boys glanced up at me, with expressions that read 'why are you talking to us?'. I took a deep breath and sat down between the two of them.

"Maybe I can play the winner?" I inquired.

"I don't think so," Ron shook his head. "I don't play against girls."

"Well what if Harry wins?"

Ron laughed, and Harry glared at him. "What?" Ron demanded, looking at the other boy. "You know you're not going to win. You barely know what you're doing, and I've never lost a match."

Harry gave in and nodded. "True," he agreed.

"Never lost a match until now," I said, my tone a clear challenge. "Because I'm going to crush you."

"We just told you, you can't play," Ron said, turning to look at me again. "Go read a book or something."

Grabbing my bag, I made a show of storming away and up to my dormitory. If Ron didn't want to play, that was fine. I'd just read my book in bed. It would probably be more interesting anyway.

I told myself that Ron was just scared. He'd never lost a match, and he knew if he played me, then I would win. He didn't want to lose, especially in front of his friend. It would be embarrassing.

The next morning, I waited anxiously as the mail was delivered for an owl to bring me a letter from my parents. When nothing arrived, I figured it would probably just arrive later in the day.

Through all my classes, I watched the windows for any sign of an owl. I watched the ceiling through lunch and dinner, and when I returned to my dorm that night, I opened the window wide, in the hopes that a nice barn owl might swoop in and drop a letter for me on my bed. But nothing arrived.

I waited all week, and still nothing came. I wondered whether I hadn't been clear in my last letter and decided to compose another, this time not leaving any room for confusion.

_Dear Mum and Dad,_

_I still haven't received any letters from you this year, and I wondered if maybe you were still unsure about the whole postage system situation. It's very simple really. Just mail your letters like you normally would in a regular mailbox, and they'll find their way to me. You'll still need a stamp – the undercover wizards will use that as payment for the owl. Owls don't deliver mail for free; you know._

_We've started having our first assessments in class. Did you know that in the wizarding world, they grade on a different scale than in the muggle world? Instead of using the letters of the alphabet in alphabetical order, the letters represent the quality of your work. So, an A is really an O, for outstanding, a B is an E, for exceeds expectations, a C is an A, for acceptable, a D is a P for poor, and an F is a D for dreadful. Hogwarts also has a sixth letter grade; T. It stands for troll, which is even worse than dreadful. I can't even imagine how poorly someone would have to perform to receive a grade of T._

_I've only received O's on my assignments so far, of course. Anything less would be completely unacceptable. I'm quite looking forward to writing the exams, though I still have a while to go before we get to that. Professor McGonagall says that if I continue the way I've been going so far, I could break the school record for student with the top marks. _

_Please write back soon. I miss you both terribly._

_Love, _

_Hermione_

I sent this third letter off with yet another school owl, and watched it fly away wistfully. I hoped my parents wrote me back soon. It was strange, being so far away from them. And with everyone always making fun of me and not wanting to hang out with me, I really needed my parents' support.

Last year, anytime Nancy Hummel would tease me, I could come home and hug Mum and Dad and feel loads better. But here, Lavender and Parvati would make fun of me, and I would have nowhere to go, no one to hug. I didn't regret coming to Hogwarts one bit, but sometimes I really wished it wasn't a boarding school.


	10. Friendship

Chapter 10: Friendship

Over the next weeks, I fell into a comfortable pattern. I woke up early, before any of my roommates, showered and dressed and headed down to the Great Hall for breakfast. At breakfast, I would read unless Neville joined me, at which point I would listen to him prattle on about whatever homework assignment he was worried about. I always made sure to be the first to arrive to class, so that I was guaranteed a seat in the front row. Neville would often sit next to me, or else a group of Hufflepuffs or Ravenclaws who would ignore me the whole lesson.

At lunch, I would grab a quick bite of lunch, and then spend the rest of the period in the library with Madam Pince. She'd warmed up to me quite a bit, and I enjoyed chatting with her about the various books I was reading. The librarian was also getting a handle on the types of books I enjoyed and had started picking some out for me.

After lunch, I had afternoon classes, and after that I would return to the library to work on my various homework assignments and revise all my notes from the day. If there was any time left over after that, I would get in a bit more reading before curfew, at which point I would return to my dorm and go straight to sleep, pulling the curtains of the four-poster bed closed to avoid any interaction with my dormmates.

I'd all but given up trying to make friends. I'd waited for a letter from my parents, hoping that maybe I could ask them for some advice on the subject, but it never came. I decided not to send a fourth letter. They knew how to contact me now and they would if they wanted to. Left to my own devices, I'd decided that if I was going to make a friend, it would happen naturally. I couldn't keep forcing myself on people. It was only making them dislike me more.

Everything was going smoothly. I avoided interaction with my classmates, and they avoided interaction with me. I kept a low profile, and nobody made fun of me. It was lonely, but it was better than being mocked and teased. And everything would have continued to go smoothly if Professor Flitwick hadn't put us into pairs to work on the levitation charm.

I'd gotten partnered with Ron. I already knew how to do the levitation spell, so I'd let Ron start. It was agonizing, listening to him mispronounce the incantation, but I'd sat quietly and patiently as he struggled to perform the spell. Finally, when I'd reached the limit of my patience, I politely informed him of what he was doing wrong and demonstrated the correct pronunciation by performing the spell myself. Unfortunately, this only seemed to annoy Ron further.

When class was over, I was on the way to the next one, completely minding my own business, when I heard Harry and Ron poking fun at me. Ron called me a nightmare, making me out to be some horrible thing imposing itself on everyone. And Harry was just nodding along in agreement.

It was at that moment that I felt something inside me snap. I'd done everything I could to stay out of everyone's way, keep to myself. I sat alone in the Great Hall, spent my free time by myself in the library. I barely interacted with any of my classmates anymore, and still they despised me. I couldn't even successfully manage invisibility.

I shoved past the boys as I sprinted to the nearest bathroom. I just couldn't do it anymore. I couldn't keep pretending that everything was alright. I couldn't keep pretending that it didn't kill me inside that everybody had friends at this school except for me.

I knew I was missing class, but for the first time ever, I didn't care. I couldn't go to class like this. I couldn't walk in there and keep a straight face in front of a room of kids that hated me. In fact, I wasn't sure I could ever face them again.

_She's a nightmare, honestly_

I cried harder than I'd ever cried before. I'd tried so hard to be likeable. I'd tried to make friends in this place. I'd thought Hogwarts was going to be a fresh start. No more Nancy Hummel, no more being the class bookworm. But from the moment I'd gotten here, I'd fallen right back into my old role.

_She must've noticed she's got no friends_

I'd always been different. I'd always known I didn't belong. When Professor McGonagall had come to call and told me that I was a witch, I'd thought I'd finally found a place in the world. I'd understood why I'd always felt out of place. I'd thought that I'd come to Hogwarts and meet like-minded people. I'd thought I would finally fit in. But I stuck out here even more than I'd stuck out in the muggle world.

_It's no wonder no one can stand her_

Ron's words resonated in my head over and over again, making me more and more miserable. I missed my next class, but I didn't care. I couldn't summon up the strength to leave the bathroom and go back out there and face everyone. Not knowing how they felt about me. Not knowing that they despised me. It was one thing to be mocked and ridiculed, but a wholly other thing to be reviled.

Finally, I made up my mind. I would go to Professor McGonagall and tell her that it had all been a big mistake. I should never have come to Hogwarts in the first place. I should have stayed at home with my parents and gone to the Academy. My acceptance letter for the prestigious school had come a week after Professor McGonagall's visit, but at that point I'd already made up my mind to come here.

Surely the Academy would still take me, even though we were two months into term. I'd make up the work I'd missed. And maybe there, I'd finally find myself among people who would understand me. The Academy was only for the most academically minded students. That was where I belonged.

I pulled some toilet paper off the roll to wipe my eyes and nose, and then flushed it down the toilet behind me. Then I turned and open the stall door.

There, standing in front of me, was the most terrifying thing I'd ever seen. Even more terrifying than that three-headed dog on the third floor. It was a troll. A mountain troll, if I wasn't mistaken.

I screamed in terror, turning around and shutting the stall door behind me as I did. What was a troll doing in the bathroom? What was it even doing in the school? I knew it was Halloween, but this was going a little over the top.

I frantically tried to remember everything I'd ever read about trolls, but my mind was coming up blank. I heard the troll advancing, its footsteps feeling like a bunch of little earthquakes. It roared, and I instinctively crouched down, covering my head in fear. There was a loud smashing sound, and I felt bits of wood raining down on my back from above. I peeked my eyes open and saw that the troll had smashed all the stall walls to bits.

It was looking for me. I tried to stay perfectly still, but it found me anyway. Its eyes locked on to me, and I panicked as it started to lift its club high above its head.

I got out of the way just in time, bolting forward and crouching down under one of the sinks. The club came down and the troll smashed the toilet I'd been standing in front of to tiny porcelain shards. I clamped my mouth shut and forced myself not to scream again as I realized that that had almost been me.

The troll, realizing that it had missed me, started to turn around as it tried to locate me again. It started swinging its club wildly back and forth around the room, smashing sinks, more bathroom stalls, and even the walls.

I backed up slowly until my back hit the wall and I realized I'd backed myself into a corner. The troll was coming at me now, having identified me, and I cast my eyes around wildly, trying to figure a way out of this. But there wasn't one. I was trapped.

I shut my eyes as the troll came to a stop directly in front of me. If this was the end for me, then so be it. At least I wouldn't have to suffer the pain of rejection and humiliation anymore. I sucked in a breath and waited for the blow, but it never came.

I opened my eyes in confusion and found that the troll had a new target of interest. Harry and Ron were standing in the doorway of the bathroom throwing bits of shattered wood at the thing.

I couldn't understand what they were doing here, or why they would put themselves in danger like this, but I was immensely grateful. I hadn't really wanted to die.

Harry told me to run, but I couldn't move. My feet felt like they were cemented to the floor. All I could do was watch in terror as Harry and Ron continued to distract the troll.

I knew I had to move, to get out of there. Harry and Ron could only distract the troll for so long. But the fear had paralyzed me, and no matter how many times I tried to be logical about the situation, I found that my body wasn't listening to my brain.

In a foolish move, Harry jumped on the troll's back and stuck his wand up its nose. I don't know what possessed him to do it, as it only made the troll angrier and wilder with its movements. I cowered in the corner as it swung its club around crazily, wishing that someone – anyone – an adult preferably – would come and save us from this nightmare.

And then Ron lifted up his wand and cast the levitation spell, causing the troll's club to slowly lift out of its hand and into the air over its head. Then Ron released the spell, letting the club fall straight down, knocking the troll unconscious.

I waited a full two minutes before I dared move. I wanted to be sure the troll was really out. But as Harry pulled his wand from its nose and still it didn't stir, I felt confident that we were out of danger, at least for now.

Professors McGonagall, Quirrell, and Snape all burst into the bathroom at that moment, ready to fight. When they saw the troll lying on the floor, with the three of us standing around it, they demanded an explanation.

I looked to Harry and Ron, wondering how they had come to find me and the troll in the first place. From the guilty looks on their faces, I guessed that they'd broken a rule or two in coming to save me. A strange sensation spread through me. It was partially gratitude, and partially something else that I couldn't put a name to. All I knew was that if they'd risked their necks like that to save me, then they couldn't hate me as much as I'd thought.

Without even realizing what I was doing, I opened my mouth and took the blame. Everyone was surprised – Professor McGonagall, Harry and Ron, even me. I wasn't sure what had possessed me to lie, I just knew that I needed to pay Harry and Ron back for what they'd done for me.

She took five points. It wasn't terribly many points, and based on the story I'd told, I probably deserved to have more taken. But it was the first five points I'd ever lost for Gryffindor house, and I felt myself feeling guilty, even though the story was made up.

She dismissed me before dismissing Harry and Ron. I wanted to talk to them – to thank them for what they'd done for me, but I also knew hanging around outside the bathroom would only get me in more trouble after Professor McGonagall had specifically ordered me to return to Gryffindor Tower. So, I went up to the seventh floor and entered the common room, waiting by the portrait hole for Harry and Ron to return.

When they arrived back, a few minutes after me, they froze upon seeing me waiting for them. The three of us stood awkwardly in the entrance to the common room for a moment as I worked up the courage to thank them for saving me.

Dinner had been sent up to the common rooms after the troll incident, so once the thank-yous were out of the way, I hurried over to get a plate for myself. Harry and Ron followed close behind me, and when I sat down to eat, I was surprised to find that the two of them sat down with me.

For the first few minutes, nobody said anything. It was an awkward situation, made even more awkward when you added in the fact that just before the whole incident with the troll, I'd been crying my eyes out in the bathroom over a conversation they'd been having about me.

"Listen," Ron eventually spoke up, looking conflicted. "I just want to say… I'm sorry about the things that I said earlier."

I raised my head in surprise. Never in a million years would I have expected an apology. And from Ron Weasley no less.

"That's okay," I said with a shrug. "I'm sure everyone's thinking the same thing."

"It's not okay," Ron shook his head. "It was mean and hurtful, and I only said it because I was mad that you were better at levitation than me."

"Well that's only because I practiced it over the summer," I informed him. "I was miserable my first time too."

"Really?" Ron asked his eyes lighting up at my confession.

"Sure," I nodded. "Nobody's perfect on their first try. I was only trying to help, you know."

Ron nodded. "I know," he agreed.

"Hey, maybe you could give me some pointers too," Harry spoke up. "I'm having trouble with levitation myself."

"And if you have any tips for transfiguration or potions or herbology, I'd like to hear those too," Ron said jokingly.

I laughed and was suddenly taken aback. Was I really sitting with two of my classmates, smiling and laughing and chatting casually? Was this what friendship felt like?

"I might have some pointers I could give you both," I offered with a smile.

And for the first time since coming to Hogwarts, I found that I was truly happy.


	11. My First Game of Chess

Chapter 11: My First Game of Chess

Now that I had friends, everything at Hogwarts started to change. Instead of eating alone and reading at breakfast, I sat with Harry and Ron and talk. As it turns out, there are a lot of topics of conversation out there that don't have anything to do with school, and some of them are actually interesting.

In classes, Harry, Ron and I argued about where to sit. I insisted on sitting in the front row, but they were prone to sitting in the back. In the end, we compromised by sitting in the middle of the room. The truth was, I could learn the same sitting anywhere in the room, but I was hoping that I might persuade Harry and Ron to pay more attention in class, and the closer to the teacher they were sitting, the more likely that was to happen. Though I suspected that my efforts would be wasted in history of magic. Professor Binns' class was considered by just about everybody besides me to be for napping.

In the afternoons, the three of us would do our homework together, either in the library or in the common room. As it turned out, Harry and Ron were both major procrastinators when it came to their schoolwork, but I intended to put a stop to that. And after the first few days of dancing around the topic, the boys finally asked me to proofread one of their essays, and now I did it on a regular basis. I was hoping that over time, looking at my edits and rewrites would help the boys to learn what to do and what not to do, and improve their homework skills.

Harry was also on the Quidditch team, which meant that he had practices three times a week. For some reason, Ron enjoyed going down to the Quidditch pitch to watch, which was perfectly fine with me. Going from no friends to constant friends so quickly was weird for me, and it gave me some time to be on my own and just read. Being alone wasn't so lonely when you have friends to hang out with later.

And in the evenings, the boys and I would hang out in the common room, chatting or playing exploding snap or gobstones, or some other game. Neville joined us occasionally, but usually it was just the three of us. I'd sometimes catch Lavender and Parvati, or Lily and Sally-Anne glaring daggers at me from across the room, and I couldn't help but smile. I hadn't become friends with Harry and Ron for the popularity, but it certainly had helped. I knew that the other girls were jealous of me, and from the way they'd been treating me since the start of term, I was happy letting them be.

One day, the three of us were sitting in the common room when Ron pulled out his chess set.

"Have a game with me, Harry?" he asked keenly.

"Nah," Harry shook his head. "I always lose anyway."

"And if you don't practice, you'll never get better," Ron pointed out.

"I'll play," I volunteered. Ever since the first time I'd seen Harry and Ron playing chess, I'd wanted to give it a try. The last time I'd asked, Ron had rejected me, but we were friends now.

"You ever play before?" Ron asked, turning to face me.

I shook my head. "No, but I'm sure I'll pick it up quickly," I assured him. "I'm very logical."

"You need more than logic to win at chess," Ron warned me. "You also need strategy."

"Just get ready to lose," I said confidently.

"I don't lose," Ron returned, equally as confident.

"We'll see about that," I declared.

I asked Harry to borrow his chess set, since I didn't have a set of my own. As it turned out, the set Harry was using was Seamus Finnigan's, as he also didn't have his own set, but I figured Seamus wouldn't mind me borrowing his men for an evening. If it turned out I enjoyed the game, I'd buy my own set over Christmas.

I asked Ron to go over the rules briefly before we started. It sounded simple enough. All I had to do was corner Ron's king before he cornered mine, and I would win.

"What say you we put a little wager on this," Ron suggested as I pondered my first move.

"Alright," I agreed readily. "Like what?"

"If I win… you have to do all my potions homework for a month," Ron said.

"Ron, you're never going to learn if you don't do your own homework," I said strictly. "How about I just revise your potions homework?"

"You already revise my potions homework," Ron pointed out. "You revise all my homework."

"Good point," I frowned. "Fine, if you win, I'll do your potions homework for a month." It didn't matter anyway, because he wasn't going to win. "And if I win?"

"What do you want?" Ron asked.

I thought about it for a moment. What did I want? I certainly didn't want Ron to do any of my homework. He wouldn't do it right, and I'd have to redo it. And now that I had Harry and Ron as friends, my life was pretty great. I glanced around the room and noticed Parvati and Lavender glaring at me again, and I had an idea.

"If I win, you have to kiss me," I challenged him.

"Eww! Gross!" Ron cried, aghast. "Why would you want that?"

"Just on the cheek," I said, rolling my eyes. Boys were so silly. At eleven, Ron thought the idea of kissing a girl was disgusting, but by thirteen or fourteen, it would be all he could think about. "It would make Lavender and Parvati so jealous."

"Fine," Ron agreed. "On the cheek. And it's not like you're going to win anyway."

"We'll see about that," I said, squaring my shoulders. "Pawn to D3."

The game did not last long. Within ten minutes, Ron had checkmate, and I had twice as much potions homework.

"I don't understand," I muttered to myself, staring at the board. I'd had a plan. And Ron's men had been all over the place. But somehow at the last minute, he'd cornered me. "How did I lose?"

"Well it was your first game," Harry pointed out. "And Ron's been playing for years."

"But it was a game of logic," I insisted. "That's my specialty."

"I guess I'm not as dumb as you thought I was," Ron said proudly.

"I never said you were dumb," I frowned.

"No," Ron agreed. "But I'm sure you've thought it. Don't worry, I'll take the next month of potions assignments as an apology."

"Let's go again," I insisted, the chessmen immediately setting up for another game at my words. "I was just warming up. I know what I'm doing now."

"You really want to do this to yourself again?" Ron demanded.

I nodded. "Herbology homework this time?" I asked.

"Make it history of magic," Ron declared.

We played, and again I lost. We played a third time, and I lost again. Ron asked if I wanted to play a fourth time, but I was already doing all his potions, history of magic, and transfiguration homework for the next month and didn't feel like adding charms to the list.

I was determined to beat him though. I didn't like losing, especially to Ron and especially at chess. Ron thought the whole thing was hilarious, but I was not amused. I determined that over the Christmas holidays, I would go to the nearby muggle library and check out a book on chess strategy. When I returned in January, I would be ready to wipe the floor with Ron and his chess set.

Over the next few weeks, things started to get strange. First Harry overheard Snape talking about trying to get past the three-headed dog on the third floor. Then at Harry's first Quidditch game, Snape jinxed Harry's broom and tried to make him fall to his death – or at least serious injury. Then after the game, we found out that the dog belong to Hagrid, was named Fluffy, and was guarding something that had to do with a Nicolas Flamel.

Something was definitely going on, and I was determined to figure out what it was. And the best place to solve a mystery was the library.

I convinced Harry and Ron to join me, though they were significantly less help than I'd hoped. They spent most of their time spit balling ideas back and forth as to what Snape could be up to instead of focusing on who Nicolas Flamel was.

"You're not going to figure anything out like that," I insisted one day. We were all in the library. I was skimming through a book about great witches and wizards of the last century, while Harry and Ron debated whether Snape was in cahoots with any of the other Professors.

"Well he's definitely not working with Professor McGonagall," Ron decided. "She's way too uptight when it comes to following the rules."

"Uptight is not a bad thing," I threw in, but neither boy was listening to me.

"And Quirrell can't be involved, he's way to nervous," Harry added.

"May I remind you that this discussion is getting us nowhere!" I cried. "Go up to a shelf, pick out a book, and start looking for someone named Flamel. He's got something to do with all of this, and once we know what that is, maybe we'll know what Snape's up to."

With a sigh, Harry and Ron did as I told them and went looking for books. Ron grabbed a book about plants that grow in arid environments, and Harry grabbed a book about kneazle breeding, and while neither book was a likely candidate for what we were looking for, I was just glad they'd moved on to a more productive activity.

All too soon, the Christmas holidays arrived. I would be going home for the two-week break, while Harry and Ron would be remaining at Hogwarts. I made them promise to keep searching the library for any mention of Nicolas Flamel, while I promised them, I would use my muggle resources to see if he had any connection to the muggle world. I'd ask my parents if they knew of him, and I'd see if there was any reference to him in the muggle library near my house.

It was my hope that when I returned in January, we would have some answers, because being unable to solve this puzzle was starting to drive me mad.

"Have a good holiday," Harry wished me goodbye that Saturday morning as I prepared to leave for the Hogwarts Express with most of the school.

"You too," I returned. "I'll see you both when term resumes."

"It's too bad you're not staying at Hogwarts with us," Ron said.

"Really?" I asked. Having friends was so new to me, I'd never had someone feel sad that I wasn't going to be around.

"Well yeah," Ron muttered, looking a little embarrassed at himself. "Because now Harry and I have to do all our homework ourselves."

I laughed and smiled, because I knew that Ron was only saying that to cover up the fact that he was actually going to miss me. Although I supposed the homework thing was partially true too.

"You just got a whole month off doing half your homework," I reminded him. "It's time you start doing it again, or you're going to fall way behind."

With that said, it was time to head down to Hogsmeade. I said my final goodbyes to the boys and fell in line with the rest of the students as we checked out of the school with Mr. Filch. Though I looked forward to spending the holiday with my parents, I would miss Harry and Ron while I was away, and for once, I had friends to look forward to upon my return.


	12. Home for the Holidays

Chapter 12: Home for the Holidays

"Mum! Dad!" I cried as I ran off the Hogwarts Express. They were both waiting for me on the platform, just as I'd hoped they would be. I'd sent them a letter telling them when I would be back, but I hadn't received a reply. At least now I knew they were receiving my letters.

As soon as I was off the train, Dad grabbed me in a big hug.

"It's so good to see you sweetie," he said, giving me a tight squeeze.

"You too Dad," I smiled, squeezing back.

Dad let go of me, and Mum swooped in for her turn.

"Happy Christmas Hermione," she said as she wrapped her arms around me.

"Happy Christmas Mum," I returned. "Even if it's not for a few more days."

"We've missed you so much," Mum said, releasing me and leading me towards the barrier to the muggle world. Dad grabbed my trunk and followed behind us.

"I've missed you too," I said. "It's so nice to be back."

"Well we've got all your favorite Christmas traditions waiting for you at home," Mum said. "We haven't decorated or anything yet. We figured we'd wait for you."

"Thanks Mum," I said with a smile. "I love our family traditions."

"Oh, well your mother and I won't be able to decorate with you," Dad said. "We have to go to work. But it'll give you something to do while we're out."

"Oh," I said, a little let down. "You weren't able to get the time off for my break?"

"With all the chocolate people are eating at this time of year, dentists are in high demand," Dad reminded me. "You know we always work extra at Christmastime."

"I know," I agreed. It was true that Mum and Dad always picked up extra shifts over the holidays, but I'd thought this year might be different.

We reached the car and piled in, to head home. I decided it was time to change the subject.

"So, I'm sure you're wondering about Hogwarts," I said from the backseat. "Would you believe that I've only been in school for four months, and we've already brewed six different potions? We did the forgetfulness potion first, which I think was a lot harder than the cure for boils, but the theory in the cure for boils was a lot tougher, so it made sense from a theoretical level to start with the forgetfulness potion. Even though it has less ingredients, you must be very precise when adding them, or else it could explode."

"That's nice sweetheart," Dad said from the driver's seat. "And what about your friends? I'm sure you've made some friends."

"I have," I said enthusiastically. "Harry and Ron. Harry's kind of famous, but I don't really see him as a celebrity because I didn't know he was famous until recently. Some of the other students get a little tongue-tied around him, but I'm sure that'll pass once people get used to him."

"Oh, a celebrity friend?" Mum said, interested. "Is he a singer? Actor? Dancer?"

"No, nothing like that," I said. "It's kind of a long story, but basically he's said to have defeated a dark wizard as a baby, which kind of makes him a hero. Personally, I don't think he did much of anything, I think the dark wizard just messed up. Harry was a baby after all. But I'd never say that to anyone at Hogwarts. They all think he must have some hidden powerful magic."

"Oh, well… good for him," Mum said. "And what about your other little friend?"

"Ron?" I said. "He's not famous. He comes from a big family with five brothers and a sister. Kind of makes me wish I had brothers and sisters…" I trailed off and then realized what I'd said. "Not that I don't love it just being the three of us!"

"Of course, sweetie," Mum nodded.

"Anyway, you would not believe what happened in charms class the other day. I was working on this spell that's supposed to make a pineapple grow legs and dance around – "

"Oh look, we're home!" Dad exclaimed, pulling the car into the driveway. "Come on Hermione, time to get unpacked!"

I figured I'd save my story for later and got out of the car and followed Dad as he carried my trunk up the stairs to my room.

"Well I've got some work to catch up on," he said. "We had to take the afternoon off to meet you at the train station. And Mum needs to get started on dinner, so you unpack, and we'll call you when it's ready."

"Oh, alright," I said, a little surprised at the abrupt nature of the exchange. "I'll see you at dinner then."

It didn't take long to unpack my trunk. Everything was very well organized, after all. When I'd finished, I paced around my room a bit, wondering if I should start my homework, but decided that I'd have plenty of time to work on that while my parents were at work. So instead, I wandered down to the kitchen to see if Mum needed any help.

"You can set the table," she offered as she stirred and chopped over by the stove.

"Alright," I agreed, reaching for the plates. "Hey Mum," I said, as I remembered what I'd promised Harry and Ron. "Have you ever heard of someone named Nicolas Flamel?"

"Nicolas Flamel?" Mum frowned. "No, why? Who is he?"

"Oh, nobody important," I said. I decided not to tell Mum and Dad about the whole situation with Snape and the three-headed dog. It would only worry them unnecessarily.

"Is it for one of your classes?" Mum asked.

"No, no. One of my dorm mates was talking about him a few nights ago, and I was curious," I lied. "He's probably a wizard anyway."

"Yes well, I wouldn't be much help in that department," Mum said, turning back to her cooking.

Dinner was quiet that night. I tried telling Mum and Dad about my classes, but they didn't seem interested. Dad kept changing the subject, and Mum kept avoiding eye contact with me. I got the impression that they weren't yet as well-adjusted as I'd hoped, what with the whole magic thing.

When Mum and Dad left for work the next day, it was a surprising relief. At least I didn't have to tiptoe around talk of magic anymore.

I spent the morning decorating the house, as I knew Mum and Dad expected me to. In the afternoon, I headed down the street to the local bookstore to buy presents for my parents. I knew they wouldn't appreciate something from a wizard shop, and instead got them each a book. By the time my parents returned home from work, Mum had to start preparing dinner, and Dad had to do some more paperwork. Instead of making awkward chitchat with Mum in the kitchen, I went up to my room to get started on my holiday homework.

The days progressed in much the same fashion until Christmas, when my parents finally had the day off. I suspected they probably would have worked on Christmas Day too, except that the office they worked at was closed.

Just like when I was a little girl, I woke up early and went straight downstairs to the Christmas tree, where I knew my parents would be waiting with hot chocolate. Altogether, we opened our presents – shockingly, my parents had gotten me a book from that same bookstore. There were also some Christmas cards from aunts and uncles with five- and ten-pound notes inside that I knew I'd have to exchange at Gringotts at some point.

When we'd finished opening presents, Mum headed into the kitchen to cook up a holiday brunch, and Dad flipped open the book I'd gotten him and started to read.

"Hey Dad," I said nervously. "I was wondering… since this is your only day off while I'm here… maybe we could go into London?"

"Well sure sweetie," Dad said. "What do you want to do in London?"

"Well… I was hoping to go to Diagon Alley," I said. "You know… to exchange my money and maybe pick up a wizard's chess set?"

Dad frowned. "We could always get you a chess set at that shop two streets over," he suggested.

"No, a wizard's chess set is different," I explained. "The pieces move on their own and attack each other. I need to get it in a wizarding shop."

"Well, you know Hermione, your mother and I have a lot of paperwork to do…"

I sighed, having figured this would be the answer. Mum and Dad were clearly uncomfortable taking me to Diagon Alley. I'd seen it the last time we were there, and I'd sensed it in every conversation we'd had since I'd been home.

But I really wanted that chess set. So, channeling Harry and Ron, I decided to tell a little white lie. "I also need to pick up some supplies for my classes," I informed Dad. "I'm running low on potions ingredients, and there's a textbook that I need for the second term that wasn't on the booklist back in July."

"And I suppose none of this can be mail-ordered?" Dad asked hopefully.

I shook my head, and Dad sighed. "Well alright then, I guess we're going to London."

After brunch, we all piled into the car and started to drive. I was excited to be going back to the wizarding community, but also conflicted because I knew Mum and Dad didn't want to be there. I didn't like making them uncomfortable, but I hadn't had any other way of getting to London.

"Listen Mum, Dad," I said as we got close. "If you don't want to come in with me, I can always meet you back on the street in say… two hours?"

"Oh, well we wouldn't want you wandering around on your own," Dad said immediately. "But… well your mother and I do have a couple of errands to run in London. And this would be a good time to take care of them."

"It's settled then," I declared. "I'll go to Diagon Alley on my own, and I'll meet you back in muggle London."

"Just call it London, sweetie," Mum said.

When we came to the Leaky Cauldron, Dad just pulled up on the side of the street so that I could jump out of the car. Neither of my parents got out to see me off, just waved as I headed into the pub.

The Leaky Cauldron was a lot busier than I'd anticipated given that it was Christmas Day. I even spotted Hagrid up at the bar with Tom the barman.

"Hagrid!" I exclaimed, walking over. "Why aren't you at Hogwarts?"

"Oh, I'll be back fer supper," Hagrid assured me. "Jus' havin a pint with ol' Tommy here. Where are yer parents?"

"They're around," I said. "They didn't want to come to Diagon Alley with me. They're still a little weirded out by all of this."

"Ah, they'll come 'round," Hagrid assured me with a grin. "They always come 'round."

"Well I've got a couple of errands to run," I said, backing away. "Oh, thanks for the cakes, by the way."

"Baked 'em meself," Hagrid said.

"Well they were delicious," I lied. An owl had arrived the night before with presents from Harry, Ron, and Hagrid. Hagrid had sent a package of little cakes that had been as hard as rocks, and almost broke a tooth. I'd ended up tossing them in the garbage, but I knew Hagrid was proud of them. "I'll see you back at Hogwarts in a week."

Once I arrived in Diagon Alley, my first stop was Gringotts to exchange my money, and then I went hunting for a wizard's chess set. I found a set I liked in a shop called _Adalbert and Frelonia's Game Shop_. After that, I had some time to kill, so I snooped around _Flourish and Blotts_ in the hopes of running across a book about Nicolas Flamel. After about an hour with no luck, I bought a revealer, because it looked cool and I hated to leave a bookstore without buying something, and then I returned to the street outside the Leaky Cauldron to wait for Mum and Dad.

"Find everything you needed?" Dad asked.

"Yep," I nodded, patting my shopping bag. As long as I kept it closed, my parents would never know I hadn't bought potions supplies and a textbook.

We got into the car and began the drive back home.

As we drove, I felt a question I'd been avoiding asking nagging at the back of my head. I knew I was going to have to ask it eventually, so I decided to just bite the bullet and get it over with.

"So… I've sent you both a few letters since being at Hogwarts," I said.

"Oh yes, your letters were just lovely," Mum said. "I'm so glad you're enjoying your time at school."

"Right," I nodded. "Well I couldn't help but notice that you never answered any of them."

"Didn't we?" Dad frowned. He glanced at Mum. "I thought you were going to answer the letters."

Mum shook her head. "I thought you were going to answer the letters," she returned.

"Well this is certainly awkward," Dad said. "We certainly intended to write you back sweetie, but there seems to have been a little miscommunication on our end."

"Oh," I said. "Right. Well that makes sense, I suppose."

"Sorry about that," Mum said. "Maybe it's for the best though. If you write us during the term, you'll have nothing to tell us about when you come home."

"You don't want me to write you anymore?" I asked, confused.

"Well it's not that we don't love hearing your stories," Dad said. "But you have to admit, we haven't had much to talk about over the holidays, since we already knew everything that was going on."

I opened my mouth to answer, but then shut it again. None of this made any sense. We had nothing to talk about because Mum and Dad shut me down every time I mentioned anything that had to do with magic. And if they'd really wanted to write me back, they'd have written me back together.

But then I realized that I understood. Mum and Dad weren't comfortable. I'd known that from the moment I'd come home for the holidays. They couldn't relate to my new life, because they didn't understand it, and from the way it looked, they didn't want to. If I wanted to stay close with my parents, there was only one thing to do. I had to stop talking about magic.


	13. Potions Disaster

Chapter 13: Potions Disaster

I returned back to Hogwarts at the end of the holidays eager to see my friends. I was shocked at how things had taken such a turn while I'd been home. Before coming to Hogwarts, my parents had been my best friends, my confidants. I'd been able to go to them with all my problems. Now, they didn't want to hear about any of it.

But, for the first time, I had friends. Before, I'd needed my parents to be my friends because I hadn't had any. Now, I had Harry and Ron to confide in, to spend time with, to have fun with. So really, I didn't need my parents in the same way that I'd used to. Maybe it was a good thing. Maybe this is just what growing up looks like. After all, it's not like all kids are best friends with their parents. Children and parents are supposed to grow apart.

I'd spent the entire second half of the holidays studying up on chess strategy and was very excited to play Ron again come the start of second term. I was convinced that I would finally be able to best him.

We wagered the same as last time, this time going with a month's worth of astronomy assignments. Ron had wanted to go with potions again, but I told him that we had to choose a subject we hadn't already done, to ensure that he didn't fall too far behind in one class.

To my dismay, Ron beat me with ease, triumphing over my defeat. My brand-new chess pieces were rather grumpy with me, having never won a game, but I assured them that I was going to get better. My queen was especially offended that she now had a noticeable crack in her crown, but I reminded her that she was a magical chess piece and could mend the crack if she wanted to. She was just being a drama queen, looking for attention.

Classes started up again and started to get a little more challenging. Not that any of the material was difficult – not for me at least – but it was definitely more intellectually stimulating. First term had been a lot of introductions to the various subjects, as well as foundations and basics. Now that it was the second term, we were really starting to delve into the material.

The search for Nicolas Flamel also got shifted onto the backburner. It wasn't that I didn't still think it was important to figure out who he was and what was going on, but I'd exhausted all the books I could think of to look for him in, and I had other things to worry about with my classes, and Ron's astronomy assignments on top of it.

I still made some time to skim through various books I'd borrowed from the library at the end of each day before bed. At first, I'd been doing it on my bed in plain sight, but my dormmates had made fun of me for flipping through the pages so fast, saying that I must have super-reading powers to read that fast. Instead of explaining to them that I wasn't reading but skimming, I started closing the curtains around me before getting my book out. It was less ideal, since I didn't have access to my bedside table once the curtains were shut, but it was worth it for the privacy.

Everything was going just fine, right up until Professor Snape decided that he was going to assign us our partners for the next potion brewing assignment. We were making an herbicide potion, and it was extremely important that we get it right, because we were going to be using them in our herbology class the following week. Neville and I had already agreed to work together, and we'd agreed that I would be in charge of the potion while he would be in charge of collecting ingredients from the cupboard and washing our equipment as needed.

Unfortunately, when we arrived in class Friday morning, Professor Snape immediately set to work separating us from our usual partners and pairing us up with the worst people he could manage. Harry got paired with Draco Malfoy, no surprise there. Ron got paired with Crabbe, and Neville with Goyle. And to my absolute and utter horror, I got paired with Lavender Brown.

"Okay, can we just agree that I'm better equipped to be in charge of brewing this potion?" I asked as soon as the class began.

"Oh, so what, I'm an idiot or something because I don't study as much as you?" Lavender challenged me.

"No," I shook my head. "You're not an idiot. You're just less prepared."

"I'm prepared!" Lavender cried in outrage.

I sighed heavily. This was not going as I'd intended it.

"Okay look," I said reluctantly. "You can chop up and grind the ingredients, and I'll heat and stir the potion. Fair?"

"I don't think so!" Lavender insisted. "Just because you get top grades doesn't mean you get to boss me around."

"Fine!" I cried in exasperation. "What do you want to do?"

Lavender made a face. "Well obviously I don't want to do anything," she said in a tone that had me expecting a 'duh' to be tacked on to the end of the sentence. "You're the one who's obsessed with school."

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. "I'm going to get our supplies," I muttered in frustration.

I walked into the store cupboard and started rifling through the various jars and tins for what I would need. I heard the door open and shut behind me and turned to find Harry and Ron.

"I can't believe I'm stuck working with _Crabbe_," Ron groaned as he grabbed some lionfish spines.

"Still better than what I got stuck with," Harry said. "I've got _Malfoy_. He's going to spend this entire period making my life miserable."

"He makes your life miserable anyway," Ron pointed out.

"Yeah, but we're in class, so I can't walk away," Harry declared.

"At least you lucked out, Hermione," Ron said.

"Excuse me?" I demanded, whirling around and spilling some of my horklump juice on the floor of the closet.

"Well you at least got a Gryffindor," Ron replied. "Lavender's alright."

"I don't think so. Lavender hates me! She's going to make this lesson torture," I replied. To be perfectly honest, I'd have preferred to work with Crabbe or Goyle, or even Malfoy if it meant not having to work with Lavender.

"You'll be fine," Harry muttered, grabbing his supplies and heading for the door. "It's not like she's going to try to kill you. I wouldn't put it past Malfoy to try something with me."

He left, and Ron left right after him. I was frustrated that they didn't understand that Lavender was just as bad a partner as Crabbe or Malfoy, but then again, Lavender and the girls were always so nice to Harry and Ron. They didn't experience them the way I did up in the dorm when they would either make fun of me, or else outright ignore me.

I replenished the spilled horklump juice and returned to my desk, where Lavender was inspecting her nails.

"Are you going to help at all?" I demanded, dumping our supplies and starting to organize them.

"Nope," Lavender shook her head, leaning back in her seat. "You going to do anything about it?"

I shook my head. To be perfectly honest, it was probably better that Lavender stay out of the way. It was annoying that I was going to have to do all the work myself, but at least I'd know it was getting done right.

I spent the entire double period measuring and chopping, crushing and mixing, heating and stirring ever so precisely, until my potion turned the exact perfect shade of green that the textbook indicated it should.

"There," I said proudly, standing back and taking a moment to silently celebrate my accomplishment. I'd done all the work myself and still produced a better potion than the rest of the class.

"You call that a potion?" Lavender asked, peering over the top of the cauldron with a judgemental expression.

"It's perfect," I informed her, confused. "What's your problem?"

"I guess I'm just wondering why you just automatically think your potion is perfect," Lavender said. "Just because you're always studying doesn't mean you know everything."

"No," I agreed. It was true that I didn't know everything. Not yet anyway. I was only twelve, and there was a lot of knowledge to be learned. "But I'm pretty confident about this potion."

Lavender crossed her arms and made a face, but I just rolled my eyes. Lavender was just being difficult for no reason. I needed to just ignore her and get on with things. Once we were finished here, we had lunch, and then the afternoon free.

"I'm going to go and get an empty vial," I declared, walking away and up towards Professor Snape's desk. Once we'd bottled our potion, we could get rid of the rest and clean up our station, and then I'd be free of Lavender.

I grabbed the nearest vial I could reach and hurried back to our desk. To my horror, my perfect green potion was now a violent shade of orange and was bubbling like mad.

"What did you do?" I demanded furiously.

"I didn't do anything," Lavender declared. "It just started doing that. I guess you're not as perfect as you think."

"Lavender, whatever you did, tell me, and maybe I can reverse it. This is both our grades we're talking about here!" I cried.

Lavender smirked and shrugged her shoulders. "If you're so smart, then figure it out."

I grit my teeth and tried not to murder Lavender as I frantically tried to figure out what could cause my potion to act like this. The bubbles indicated that the potion was boiling, but there was no fire underneath since I'd extinguished it not long before. That meant that whatever Lavender had done had created its own heat.

The potion had also changed color, so whatever Lavender had added had created a chemical change, not just a physical one.

I desperately searched my mind for anything I could think of that could do this but came up short.

"Please Lavender, just tell me what you did," I pleaded.

"Not so smart now, are you, bookworm?" Lavender mocked me.

"Lavender, what's wrong with you?" I cried, tears springing to my eyes, I was so mad. "If I fail, you fail too."

"So?" Lavender said, not seeming to care. "I've failed other assignments before. It's not the end of the world."

"Ugh!" I cried.

It was at that exact moment that Professor Snape arrived at our desk and took a look inside our cauldron.

"Shameful," Professor Snape said, shaking his head. "And I suppose you thought it would be clever to add more horklump juice after the potion had already been completed?"

"Horklump juice?" I frowned, trying to figure out why that would cause the reaction I was seeing.

"Don't play dumb," Professor Snape snapped. He waved his wand and the entire potion disappeared. "Zeros for the both of you. And five points from Gryffindor, Miss Granger, for having the audacity to think you know better than the inventor of this potion."

"But I didn't even – "

"Silence!" Professor Snape interrupted me.

He stalked off to the next table without another word, and I spun around to face Lavender angrily. "What was the point of that?" I demanded.

Lavender had to stifle a laugh, which only made me angrier.

"Wow Hermione, your first zero. How does it feel?" she asked.

"What are you talking about?" I demanded.

"How does it feel, to be brought down a peg?" Lavender asked. "Now you're just like the rest of us."

"You did this on purpose?" I cried in shock. "You sabotaged our potion so that I would get a zero?"

Lavender didn't respond, instead just cocking her head to the side and then looking away.

I was seething. My potion had been perfect, and Lavender had ruined it. Why? Because she was threatened by me. Her and all those other Gryffindor girls. They were threatened by my brains. They didn't like that I was smarter than them, that I got better grades than them. They used to take pleasure in the fact that I didn't have any friends, but ever since befriending Harry and Ron, I knew they'd been looking to knock me down a peg. And now Lavender had.

I had received a zero. It was my first zero ever. In fact, it was my first failing grade ever. In fact, it was my first not-perfect grade ever. It was a stain on my record, a blemish on an otherwise flawless academic history. I'd never be able to recover from this. No matter how much extra credit work I did, no matter how well I did on every assignment from now until the end of time, I would never have a perfect overall score again. I would always and forever be a point, or a half a point, or a small fraction of a point away from perfection. And it was all Lavender's fault.


	14. A Mystery Solved

Chapter 14: A Mystery Solved

In the wake of the disastrous potions class, my roommates had new material to torture me with. When I went up to bed that night, they'd painted a big red 'T' on my bedspread, representing 'Troll', the absolute worst grade a person could get.

It wasn't a huge deal. One quick spell and the paint was gone, and I was pulling the curtains shut so that they wouldn't see my tears. What upset me was the humiliation. Sure, it wasn't technically my fault that I'd failed the potions assignment. In fact, I'd brewed a perfect potion, and someone had simply tampered with it. But I was still ashamed of myself.

If I'd only realized that Lavender had added extra horklump juice, I could have thrown in some lionfish spines and at least stopping the bubbling. The potion would still have been orange – it would have taken another half hour of careful heating and stirring to bring back the green color – but we might have at least gotten part-marks.

Harry and Ron didn't understand. They understood that I was upset of course. And they comforted me as best they could. But they didn't truly get why this was so upsetting for me.

"One zero will hardly affect your average," Ron assured me. "I've gotten tons of zeros, and I'm still passing the year."

"You know you know how to brew the potion," Harry said. "You'll be fine on the exam in June.

But none of that was the point. I didn't care about exams; I knew I'd pass those with flying colors. And my goal wasn't just to pass the year, it was to be the best. How could I be the best with a zero?

While Harry and Ron weren't too great at the reassuring, they were very good at the distracting. Ron challenged me to more chess games, which I was still losing, but losing less badly, which I considered progress. Harry invited me to come watch his Quidditch practices, which I did, though I didn't find it nearly as entertaining as Ron apparently did. We visited with Hagrid a few times, and by the end of the following week, I was barely thinking about my zero at all, apart from when Lavender and the other girls would bring it up in the dorm, which they did less and less as I stopped giving them the reaction they wanted.

A few weeks later, I was playing a game of chess with Ron, when suddenly Harry had the breakthrough, we'd all been waiting for with Flamel. He remembered him from Dumbledore's chocolate frog card. After reading it, I knew exactly where to look for him, and realized excitedly that I had just the book up in my dorm.

Nicolas Flamel was an alchemist. He'd created the Philosopher's Stone. Which had to be the item that the giant three-headed dog was guarding. It was no wonder Professor Snape wanted it. Unlimited riches and immortality were a pretty attractive combination.

For a moment, I felt vindicated. Finally, we'd solved the puzzle. But then I started to wonder what we were supposed to do next. We put all this effort into figuring it out, and now we knew Snape was trying to steal this extremely valuable object. We had to do something about it, but we were first years. There wasn't much we could do. And we couldn't exactly tell an adult, like I normally would, because we weren't supposed to know about any of this.

Over the next few days, I found myself keeping an extra close eye on Professor Snape. I don't know what I was hoping to notice. It wasn't as though he was acting any different than usual.

I decided not to go so far as to stalk him, though I did find myself wandering up to the third floor more often than usual. That is, until Mr. Filch caught me hovering near the door that led to the right-hand side corridor and told me to scram.

"Look, last time he tried to get the stone, he had to let a troll in as a diversion," Harry pointed out to me one evening. "So as long as nothing crazy is happening, we don't have anything to worry about. When the next big catastrophe hits Hogwarts, that's when we go head him off."

"Or tip off an adult," I said. "We're just first years. Snape could take the three of us out in a second."

So, we waited. But as the days passed, and nothing exciting happened, thoughts of Snape and the Philosopher's Stone migrating to the backs of our minds and other things came to the forefront.

For one thing, Harry had his next Quidditch game coming up, and Snape was refereeing. It was strange that Madam Hooch wasn't doing it, and after what had happened at the last game, this was not a good development.

For another thing, Lavender and the other girls were still mocking and teasing me mercilessly, and I was starting to reach the end of my rope. I'd taken the laughter and ridicule all through primary school, and then again through most of this year. But first year was going to be over soon, and I wasn't about to let them continue on like this for another six years.

So the night before the big Quidditch match, I said my goodnights to Harry and Ron early and stalked up to the dorm, a plan in mind.

When I entered the dorm, Lavender and Parvati were seated on Parvati's bed while Sally-Anne and Lily stood on the floor behind them braiding their hair. Upon my arrival, all conversation and hair braiding came to a stop and the four girls turned to look at me.

"You're back early," Parvati said snidely. "Did Harry and Ron finally come to their senses and realize that you're way to lame to hang out with them?"

"Actually Parvati, I came to have a word with you," I said, my voice hard. I didn't let her comment get to me. I knew she was only jealous, and I was about to exploit that. "I came to have a word with you all, actually."

"Oh?" Lily said, dropping Lavender's hair and crossing her arms in front of her, like a challenge.

"That's right," I nodded, desperately trying not to lose my nerve. "All these comments and snide remarks that you make to me? I'm putting an end to that tonight."

"You and what army?" Lavender demanded, testing me.

I crossed my arms defiantly. "Look, you all know I'm friends with Harry Potter. And while he may not exert his influence all the time, if at all, he could if he wanted to. He could ruin each and every one of your reputations with just one word to the right person."

"Is that a threat?" Sally-Anne cried.

"You bet it is!" I said, my Gryffindor courage roaring. "Now I don't care if you don't like me. I don't care if you ignore me. I don't care if you never say a nice thing about me as long as I live. But I'm through with being teased and laughed at. I'm through with being sabotaged. I'm through with being treated like a piece of crap just because I'm a little different than you all."

"Who made you the queen of this dorm?" Lavender demanded.

"Nobody's queen of anything," I insisted. "I'm just asking for a little bit of respect."

"She's bluffing," Parvati said. "Harry's not going to do anything."

"Try me," I said calmly.

The girls exchanged nervous looks amongst themselves. I could tell that they wanted to believe I was bluffing but weren't confident enough to commit to it. And the truth was, while this was a partial bluff, since I hadn't mentioned anything to Harry, I felt pretty sure that he would do it if I asked him the right way.

"Fine," Lavender finally said, as the four girls all turned back towards me. "We accept your terms. But just know, that you've just blown your chances of ever being friends with any of us."

"Like that was ever going to happen," I rolled me eyes. "I'll be in the bathroom."

"Whatever," Lavender responded.

I grabbed my bathroom kit and crossed the landing to our shared bathroom, letting out a breath of relief once the door closed behind me. Of all the things I'd ever done, including facing a three-headed dog, and almost getting expelled for being caught outside the dorm after curfew, standing up to my dormmates had been the most stressful.

But I'd done it, and I'd succeeded. And hopefully things would be a bit more tolerable gong forward.

The next day was Harry's second Quidditch match. Ron and I brought our wands with us, prepared for anything that might happen. However, to our relief, Professor Dumbledore was in attendance, and nothing notable happened besides Ron getting into a fight with some of the Slytherins and getting a rather nasty cut on his cheek.

When Harry returned after the game, he had some chilling news about Professor Snape and the stone. Namely that Professor Quirrell seemed to be the only person currently standing in his way. It wasn't very reassuring, but there was no time to dwell on it. There was something else coming up that was going to require our full attention from here on out.

Exams were coming.


	15. Dragon Bite

Chapter 15: Dragon Bite

The next day, I immediately began to make a study plan. I had to make sure I studied everything. I figured I could get about an hour of revision in every morning before breakfast, another hour at lunch, and four more hours at the end of the day. I had to sort out what subjects I would revise and when. I assigned each subject a color and filled in a large revision-timetable. I decided if I was going to revise the material for the entire year, I had better specify what I would study from each class each day. I tried to vary the topics as much as possible so that I could cover everything as evenly as possible.

"What are you so worried about?" Ron asked. "You know you could pass these exams even if you didn't study another day for the rest of term."

"If all I was worried about was passing, then I wouldn't be the same girl who looks over your potions essays," I pointed out.

"Good point," Ron nodded. "Carry on."

Harry and Ron seemed to be taking everything much less seriously than I was. I couldn't understand how they weren't at all worried. It was like they didn't even care if they didn't come back next year. I tried to convince them to make their own revision-timetables, but they flat-out refused. The teachers had also begun to pile on more and more work, which I found a welcome addition as it was all designed to help us with our revising. Even Harry and Ron had to start spending more time with me in the library to keep up with the work.

But then, all my best laid plans were ruined when Hagrid decided to adopt a dragon.

"He's mental!" Ron exclaimed.

Hagrid had invited us down to his hut the previous night, and we'd all witnessed the dragon hatching. I'd hoped, after he'd shown us the egg, that I might be able to talk some sense into him and convince him to get rid of it before it hatched, but I had been unsuccessful. And now the problem was thrice as big and getting bigger by the day.

"Hagrid, you have to see reason," I pleaded with him one afternoon. Harry was at Quidditch practice and Ron was watching, but I'd taken the opportunity to slip away to talk to Hagrid.

"Hermione, you don' understand," Hagrid insisted. "Norbert's family. And you don' abandon family."

"I'm not asking you to abandon him," I sighed. "Just send him somewhere where he'll be happier. Think about it. He's going to grow to be really big."

"I know me hut's too small," Hagrid assured me. "I've got a plan. When 'e gets too big, I'll just make 'im a little home in the forest."

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. "That's all well and good," I said. "But do you really think Norbert would want to grow up all alone in the forest?"

"'E won' be alone!" Hagrid protested. "'E'll 'ave me!"

"But he won't have any of his own kind around," I pointed out. "He won't have any other dragons to grow up with. It's important to have friends."

I suddenly realized that while I was talking about Norbert, I was also talking about myself. I'd spent so much of my life with just my parents, I hadn't even realized what I was missing, not having friends. But now that I had them, I knew that they were extremely important.

"Look, if you raise Norbert on your own, I'm sure he'll be well cared for and he'll seem happy and healthy. But he won't be. He needs to be somewhere where he can fit in. He'll always feel out of place in the forest, because it's not where he was meant to be."

I could see that I was starting to get through to Hagrid. His expression was softening, and he looked over at Norbert sadly.

"I don' wan' 'im to be unhappy," Hagrid said.

"Then you need to set him free," I said gently.

Hagrid considered it for a moment, but then he clammed up and his expression went stoic again.

"No, I can' give 'im up yet. Maybe when 'e's older, but righ' now 'e needs 'is mummy. Besides, I 'ave nowhere for 'im to go," Hagrid said obstinately.

It was no use. Without a suggestion of where Norbert could go, Hagrid wouldn't set him free. Hagrid was too afraid that Norbert would end up in a worse situation, or else simply get lost and never find his own. And no matter what I said, he wouldn't change his mind.

I was starting to fall behind in my studying. I revised my revision timetable a couple of times to make up for the time I was losing talking to Hagrid, but with each revision, another subject had to pay the penalty for my time wasting. I just hoped that the consequences wouldn't be fatal.

Finally, Harry had the brilliant idea to see if Ron's brother Charlie could take in Norbert. He was a dragon trainer in Romania, after all, and would be the perfect candidate to raise Norbert. Plus, Hagrid knew and trusted Charlie.

To our collective relief, Charlie agreed, and so a plan was formed.

"Ahh!" Ron cried.

"Is it your hand again?" I asked.

Ron nodded. "It's starting to throb," he informed me.

"I really think you need to go to the hospital wing," I insisted. Harry had slipped away to check on Hagrid and Norbert, and Ron and I were on our way to class to meet back up with him.

Ron had been down at Hagrid's hut the previous night helping to feed the dragon and had gotten bitten. It hadn't seemed like a big deal at the time, and we'd agreed that the hospital wing was an exaggeration. But this morning the hand had swelled, and now it was starting to turn funny colors.

"No," Ron shook his head. "Madam Pomfrey will know it's a dragon bite in a heartbeat."

"But if you don't go, you could get a serious infection," I insisted. "You're already getting a serious infection."

"It'll go away," Ron insisted.

"Not without treatment," I shook my head. "Did you know that in the muggle world, people die from infections?"

"Well that doesn't happen in the wizarding world," Ron declared. "So I'm not worried."

"They don't happen because witches and wizards seek appropriate medical care when they contract one," I rebutted. "Please go see Madam Pomfrey."

But Ron was adamant. So instead we went to charms and I watched out of the corner of my eye all through class as Ron's hand slowly changed from purple to a sickly green.

Finally, I'd had enough. I raised my hand, even though Professor Flitwick hadn't asked a question, and started speaking before he had the chance to call on me.

"Professor, I need to take Ron to the hospital wing," I declared.

Ron glared at me furiously, but I didn't care. He wasn't about to die from this.

"What seems to be the problem, Mr. Weasley?" Professor Flitwick asked, looking Ron up and down.

"Nothing Professor, I'm fine," Ron assured him, tucking his hand into his sleeve. But I wasn't having it. I reached over and yanked his sleeve down off his hand and held it up.

"He's infected," I said, showing the charms Professor the now green, swollen hand. "He got bitten by a – "

"A dog," Harry supplied.

"Yes, he got bit by a dog," I agreed. "It must have been rabid or something. We can across it when we were taking a walk down on the grounds yesterday."

"And you waited until now to seek treatment?" Professor Flitwick demanded. "That was very foolish. Go on Mr. Weasley, and get that hand looked at."

"Thank you, Professor," I said, gathering up my things and Ron's.

"Miss Granger, you may stay put," Professor Flitwick insisted. "Mr. Weasley appears perfectly capable of walking down to the hospital wing himself."

I didn't like it, but I didn't have a choice. Besides, someone had to take notes for Ron, since he was going to miss the rest of class, and to be perfectly honest, I didn't trust Harry to be thorough.

Sitting through the remainder of charms class was like torture, but finally, the lesson came to an end and Harry and I raced to the fourth floor to see how Ron was doing.

As it turned out, Ron was fine. He was in a great deal of pain, and Madam Pomfrey was mad that he'd waited so long to seek medical help, because now her job would be much more difficult. But worse than that, Malfoy knew about our plan to smuggle Norbert out of the castle. Ron had accidentally let him take the book we'd stashed Charlie's letter in. And it was too late to change our plans.

"So, the plan's all set?" Ron asked. It was Saturday evening. Harry and I were going to smuggle Norbert to the top of the Astronomy Tower that night, and then we would be free of the dragon for good.

"Yep, everything's ready to go," I nodded.

"And what about Malfoy?" Ron asked, worried. "You know, maybe I should come too, just in case – "

"Not a chance," I shook my head. "You need to rest and recover. Madam Pomfrey says it'll be at least another few days before she has that infection under control. I can't believe you let it travel so far before coming here. And Harry and I can handle Malfoy just fine."

Ron grumbled, and I knew he was upset about being stuck on the sidelines. But it was more important that he heal, and we weren't about to risk Norbert biting him again and making everything ten times worse.

"Just be careful, alright?" Ron insisted.

"Of course."

That night, everything went off without a hitch. We hid under Harry's invisibility cloak, so when Malfoy tried to bust us, he failed spectacularly and ended up landing himself in detention. Charlie's friends came by to pick up Norbert, and they flew off into the night. Everything was going just as we'd planned, right up until we forgot the invisibility cloak on top of the tower and got caught out of bed after curfew by Filch.

"I blame Hagrid," I mumbled as Filch dragged us to Professor McGonagall's office to receive our punishment.

"I blame Hagrid too," Harry returned.


	16. My Very First Detention

Chapter 16: My Very First Detention

My stomach felt like lead. My intestines were squirming uncomfortably. As Filch led the way to Professor McGonagall's office, I walked as though in a daze. I could tell that my legs were moving, but I was unsure as to what was propelling them forward. For the first time ever, the logical, analytical, reasoning part of my brain shut down, and it was all I could do to make sure I kept breathing.

When we reached Professor McGonagall's office, she started talking to us, but I couldn't hear a word she was saying. It was like I was in my own bubble of silence, a voice in the back of my head my only company. _You broke the rules, you're in trouble. How could you be so irresponsible?_

Professor McGonagall looked furious and I knew that it was my actions that had caused this fury. My eyes glazed over and I could no longer tell what was going on around me. My mind just kept repeating to me over and over what I had done and how I was a horrible person.

I should never have agreed to get involved in this little escapade. It wasn't my responsibility to watch out for Hagrid. He was a grown man. We'd done all of this to prevent him getting in trouble for having a dragon in his hut, but now we were in trouble instead.

Eventually I found myself following Harry and Neville back to the common room. How Neville ended up with us, I couldn't figure out, but somehow, my usual curiosity was gone, and I couldn't even be bothered with asking.

Thankfully, my dorm mates were all asleep when I returned to my dormitory. I didn't have the energy to deal with them at that moment. I crawled into my bed and pulled the curtains closed around me. I grabbed at my covers and pulled them up over my head and I curled up into a ball and let my misery wash over me.

I'm Hermione Granger. I study and get good grades. I don't wander around after curfew and get in trouble. This never would have happened if I had never become friends with Harry and Ron in the first place. They must have a bad influence on me. Maybe I should go back to the old, lonely Hermione; the Hermione that studies day and night and doesn't smuggle illegal creatures through the school after curfew.

Finally, mercifully, after hours of lying there, wallowing in my guilt, I finally fell asleep.

0o0o0o0o0o0

The next morning, I realized something important. Sure, the old Hermione was responsible and smart and obedient and everything I prized myself on, but she didn't have to disappear. I didn't want to give up my friends, because I haven't had friends before in my whole life, and it felt really good, but I could still be me. One detention wouldn't change my whole life. So, I got up, got ready, and headed down to the common room to meet Ron and Harry before going to breakfast.

It was bad. It was worse for Harry, because he was famous and everyone knew him, but I still felt like melting into a pile of popsicle goo every time someone recognized me and started glaring. Class was terrible. I always felt like I was being stared at. I could feel eyes boring into me as I sat hunched over my notes. I tried to stay out of the spotlight for a while. I stopped answering questions in class and I stopped trying to correct other people's work when I saw their mistakes. I didn't need any more attention than I was already receiving.

Even worse than the hostility I got from other students though, was the disappointment that each of my teachers displayed whenever I saw them.

"I really thought you were better than this," Professor Flitwick said as I took a seat in charms.

"Such a shame," Professor Sprout said in the greenhouse. "You had such promise."

"I guess not all Gryffindors are as perfect as they seem," Professor Snape mocked us in potions class.

I felt like a failure. I felt like I'd let everyone down. First a failing grade on my herbicide potion and now this. And if my parents were to find out… I just had to hope Professor McGonagall didn't write home about this.

Harry, Neville, Malfoy and I met Filch in the Entrance Hall the following night, and he led us outside to Hagrid's hut.

Hagrid explained that we were going to be looking for a hurt unicorn. He split us up into two groups, Malfoy, Neville, and Fang went one way, Harry, Hagrid, and I went the other. We ventured into the forest slowly. I knew I was supposed to be looking for a unicorn, but I was more focused on staying right next to Hagrid in case something worse was to appear.

The whole ordeal was terrifying. At first, I'd been a little surprised that our detention was going to be so atypical of the normal sort – writing lines, banging chalkboard erasers, sitting in a corner for a specified amount of time. But now that we were out in the forest, it made sense. Spending the evening surrounded by the dangers of the Forbidden Forest was sure to dissuade anyone from ever breaking another rule again. Not that I needed the extra push. The judgement and disappointed looks from students and staff had been enough for me.

After about an hour, I caught sight of some red sparks and my heart started to race. What was happening? Were Neville and Malfoy in danger? Would the danger soon be coming for the rest of us? Would I make it out of the forest alive?

Hagrid hurried off to check on the boys, leaving Harry and I completely alone. Without Hagrid, started to panic. Whatever was in this forest that had resulted in it having been restricted to student access could jump out and devour us at any moment. I surreptitiously inched closer to Harry. It wasn't that I thought he'd be much use in the way of protection, but more that I didn't like feeling so exposed.

Hagrid returned, and to my relief, the boys were all right. Hagrid changed around the groups then, sending Harry off into the forest with Malfoy and having Neville join our team.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" I wondered as Harry and Malfoy traipsed down the path with Fang in tow. "What if they kill each other?"

Harry and Malfoy were famous for hating each other, after all, and had butted heads on more than one occasion.

"They'll be fine," Hagrid assured me. "Harry can hold his own."

It was no surprise to me to find out that Neville was extremely jumpy. With every rustle of the wind, every stick cracked underfoot, he would startle and grab onto my arm.

"Maybe we should turn back," I suggested a little while later. "I think we've learned our lesson."

"Can't," Hagrid replied, shaking his head. "Haven' finished our mission."

I wondered if Hagrid realized that this was still a detention. We couldn't be out here all night, we had to get to sleep at some point. I also realized there was a strange irony to being punished for being out after curfew by being forced to stay out past curfew.

"Hagrid, it's getting late," I said as we walked deeper into the forest. It was getting quieter, the leaves stiller, and it chilled me to the bone. Something wasn't right about this forest. "Please can we turn around?"

Before Hagrid could answer, Malfoy came running and screaming out of the dense forest, followed not long after by Harry riding a centaur. They'd found the unicorn, but they'd also found something much worse.

"All righ' let's go. Back teh the castle with yeh lot," Hagrid declared, turning us around and leading us back towards the grounds.

Harry had run into _him_. In the forest. In _our _forest. Right here, next to where we ate and slept and went to class. He was so close, I could throw a rock off the Astronomy Tower and hit him if I knew the right direction to throw. He was so close; he could waltz right up to the castle and kill everyone inside if he wanted. Which begged the question – why didn't he?

Harry answered the question for me. He couldn't. He wasn't at full strength. He needed the Philosopher's Stone. He needed Snape to steal him the Philosopher's Stone. And once he did, he'd be back to full power.

My only comfort was that we still had Professor Dumbledore around. Dumbledore had been the only person He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named had ever feared. As long as he was around, we'd be protected. I didn't have to worry.

When I went up to my dormitory, Sally-Anne was awake. When she saw me, she scowled. "I hope you've learned your lesson," she said, clearly still angry about the points I had lost for Gryffindor. I ignored her and pulled my curtains closed.

I suppose I should have been worried about the Stone and You-Know-Who and everything, but exams were just around the corner, and the next day I began revising like crazy. I reread all of my notes for all of my classes for the whole year, as well as rereading all our assigned textbooks and a few others I thought might be useful. I allowed Harry and Ron to study from my notes as well, because I looked at theirs and they were horrid.

As it came closer and closer to exam time, I became more and more nervous. I almost stopped eating, choosing instead to stay in the library and read. Harry and Ron had to forcefully drag me to the Great Hall if I was going to eat anything at all. I started reading in bed again and – although I didn't tell anyone this – I slept with my notes under my pillow.

All too soon, Monday arrived and it was time for my first exam – Herbology. First, we had a written exam and then afterwards, we had to do some practical work in the greenhouse.

After Herbology, we had Charms, which I was sure I did really well on. I even included some information I had read in one of the chapters of _The Standard Book of Spells_ that had never been assigned. The practical exam for Charms was easy – all we had to do was make a pineapple tap dance across the desk. I had practiced many more spells than just that one.

The next day we had Defense against the Dark Arts, but it was only a written exam – Professor Quirrell said he didn't think a practical exam would be necessary. In the afternoon, we had Potions. We had to brew a forgetfulness potion in addition to our written exam. I worried that my potion wasn't thick enough, but Harry was next to me and he insisted it was perfect. When I told him that I was sure it was horrible, he rolled his eyes at me and shared a look with Ron.

After each exam, I went over it again in my head and looked up the answers in my books. This seemed to really annoy Ron, though I don't know why. I just wanted to make sure I'd answered everything right.

Wednesday morning, we had Transfiguration. I felt that I could have done better in the written part, but when I had to transfigure my mouse into a snuffbox, Professor McGonagall said it was wonderful.

We had our written Astronomy exam that afternoon, but our practical exam was at midnight. We had to identify constellations with our telescopes. After that exam, around one in the morning, we all piled back into the common room and went to bed to rest before our last exam the next morning – History of Magic.

I fell right asleep as soon as I got into bed as I was extremely tired. Around three in the morning, I woke up suddenly in a panic and grabbed my notes from under my pillow and began to revise. About halfway through, I realized I was revising for Transfiguration and that I had just written that exam the previous morning. I had never switched my Transfiguration notes for my History notes when I came to bed as I was so tired from Astronomy. Instead of switching the notes, however, I just let myself fall back asleep.

The History of Magic exam was much easier than I had anticipated. I had heard from some of the older years that it was extremely difficult, but I suppose that's because everyone sleeps through Professor Binns' lectures. In preparation, I had read four extra books I had found in the library that covered topics I thought might be on the exam, but it turned out I hadn't needed to at all.

All in all, I felt good about my exams. I was actually a little disappointed that they were over, but at least I had next years' to look forward to.


	17. Saving the School

Chapter 17: Saving the School

The peace of having completed all of our exams was short lived when we realized that tonight was the night Professor Snape made his attempt to steal the stone. When we tried to tell Professor McGonagall about it, she shut us right down. And with Professor Dumbledore gone for the evening – there was only one thing for it. We had to stop him ourselves.

We made a plan. I went to wait outside the staff room, where Snape was, to try to keep an eye on him and Harry and Ron stood guard outside the third-floor corridor.

I arrived at the door to the staff room and nervously hovered outside the door, praying that Professor Snape stayed inside. To my dismay, almost as soon as I'd arrived, he emerged from the room.

"Granger. What do you want?" he demanded.

"Oh – I – I was just waiting for… Professor Flitwick!" I lied. "I had a question for him about my exam."

Professor Snape glared at me for a moment, and then disappeared into the staff room again. I breathed a sigh of relief, but it was short lived, as moments later he emerged with my charms Professor.

"Here," Professor Snape said. "Ask your question and then move along."

I watched as Professor Snape disappeared down the corridor. I wished I could follow him, but Professor Flitwick was waiting expectantly.

"Miss Granger?" he prompted when I didn't say anything.

"Oh, right," I said, remembering that I was supposed to be worried about my charms exam. "I'm really sorry to bother you, but I was just worried about question seventeen B, where if asked about _alohomora_. I wasn't sure if I was supposed to include the entire history of how the spell was invented, or if I was just supposed to explain what the spell does," I said. I made sure to fidget and play with my hair during my speech to make it seem like I was nervous. Which I was. Just not about my exam.

"Well actually, Miss Granger, you included much more than I had meant to be included. All that was needed was a simple explanation, a sentence at most, and you provided me with an entire paragraph. I must say I was quite impressed at the expanse of your knowledge on the subject," Professor Flitwick replied. I continued to act nervous, and Flitwick looked around to see if there was anyone within earshot. "Just between you and me, Miss Granger, your exam score was one hundred and twelve percent. I assure you; you have nothing to worry about."

At this I smiled a genuine smile. I had scored a hundred and twelve percent. This was amazing! Professor Flitwick patted me on the back then and returned to the staff room, and I reluctantly returned to the common room now that we had no idea where Professor Snape had gone to.

Harry and Ron were both in the common room when I returned. Apparently, Professor McGonagall found them guarding the door and made them leave as well. Harry decided there was nothing else to do but to go down the trapdoor tonight and try to stop Snape. Ron and I decided we would go with him. It seemed that none of the teachers were going to help us, or even believe that the stone was in danger of being stolen, and Dumbledore was away, so He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named would be able to do whatever he pleased once he came back to power.

I knew we would be breaking many school rules, I realized that I was alright with that. I decided that if you're doing it for a good and noble reason, breaking the rules can be okay.

Even though we could get in trouble tonight, and I might even end up with another detention, if we saved the stone and stopped You-Know-Who from returning to power, I would take as many detentions as they gave me and I would take them without complaint. Because sometimes you have to break a few rules in order to do what's right.

Getting out of the common room was a bigger challenge than expected. I felt bad for casting the full-body-bind on Neville, but we didn't have time to dawdle.

It was clear when we arrived at the room Fluffy was kept in that Professor Snape had beaten us to it. The door was already open, and a harp stood off to the side, silent now, but probably previously charmed to lull the three-headed dog to sleep.

Harry started to play the flute and the effect was instantaneous. We got the trapdoor open, and then Harry handed the flute to me so that he could be the first to jump.

I didn't know how to play the flute, and what came out was more shrill whistling than music, but Fluffy either didn't notice or didn't care, because he continued to snore away.

Once Harry gave us the all clear, Ron jumped next, and I followed after him, going last as I had the flute. We landed on a soft bed of something, for which I was grateful. I didn't have time to be mending broken bones right now.

When the plant we'd landed on started moving, I realized it was Devil's Snare. Harry and Ron looked to me for ways to defeat it, but my mind was blanking. I could remember bits and pieces of Professor Sprout's lecture on the plant, but I couldn't seem to remember anything important. I suddenly understood what it was like for regular people to take exams. Stress really could make a person forget everything they'd studied and knew inside and out.

Luckily, Harry and Ron kickstarted my brain and I cast a spell to start a small fire, allowing Harry and Ron to get free of the vines.

When we got to the next obstacle, I was relieved that the pressure would fall on Harry this time. Flying was his specialty. He managed to catch the appropriate winged key, and we advanced to the next room.

The third obstacle was a game of chess. I honestly couldn't believe it. Of all the obstacles we could have run into, we found ourselves faced with the game that was arguably the only thing Ron was actually good at.

He immediately took charge, and I let him. He was better at the game than me and we didn't have time right now for me to be practicing. We needed to win if we were going to stop Professor Snape before he did something irreversible like bring back the darkest wizard in recent history.

Everything was progressing rather smoothly right up until the end. When Ron announced that he was going to sacrifice himself so that we could win the game.

Harry and I protested. There must be some other way we could win, but Ron was adamant, and he had set his mind to it. He stepped forward and the white queen struck him on the head, causing him to fall to the floor, unconscious.

I heard myself cry out, and my legs tried to move. They screamed to my head to allow them to run to Ron and make sure he was alright, but the logical part of my mind protested. I had to stay still until the game was over. So, as Harry moved forward to finish the game, I watched Ron and tried to determine how he was doing.

Once the game was over, and we had won, I went to Ron, but there was nothing I could do for him. He looked mostly unharmed, apart from the fact that he was unconscious, and the only way to heal him from that was either time, or to bring him to the hospital wing.

He had done all this so that Harry and I could continue, so even though I felt horrible leaving him lying there, I followed Harry through the doorway into the next chamber. Of the five teachers that had provided obstacles, we had already passed through three, not to mention Fluffy. That meant there should be two more rooms before we came to the Stone.

The next room smelled horrible. Lying in the middle of the chamber, there was a troll, similar to the one Harry and Ron had saved me from on Halloween. Thankfully, it seemed that Professor Snape had taken care of it, as it was out cold. We stepped around it carefully and proceeded to the next room – the last obstacle.

As soon as we had passed through the doorway, purple flames sprang up, preventing us from turning back. Simultaneously, black flames sprang up in the doorway on the other end of the room, preventing us from continuing as well. In the middle of the room, there was a table lined with potion bottles. Next to them, there was a scroll. I picked up the scroll and read it, my smile growing wider as I did.

I was in my element now. It was a logic puzzle. It wasn't even magic. All I had to do was reason out the clues.

I looked back at the paper. The tallest and the smallest weren't poison. The puzzle told me that much. And the tallest one was also the second from the right, so it was the same as the second from the left. That meant it couldn't be the one to go forward or backwards, since there was only one each of those. That meant the tallest bottle was nettle wine, and that the second from the left also had to be nettle wine due to clue number four. And then that meant the bottles to the left of those had to be poison because of clue number one. And the one in the middle had to be poison too, because it had to be to the left of the wine and the other one was the smallest, which couldn't be poison because of clue number three. That left the one on the far right and the third one from the left. But clue number two said that the ones on the ends wouldn't help us go forward, so the one on the right had to go back. That meant that the third one from the left, the smallest bottle, was the one to go forward, through the black flames.

I'd solved the puzzle, but there was still one problem. The potion we needed to advance only had enough liquid inside for one sip. Only one of us could go forward.

Harry volunteered. And while I protested at first, his logic was sound. If he went forward, he could stall Professor Snape while I got out of here and send a message to Professor Dumbledore. With any luck, the Headmaster would be able to go down and help Harry stop Professor Snape before he was able to do anything.

He insisted I drink first. I raised the bottle to my lips and felt a cold chill run down my spine, filling me up with ice. I shivered. I said goodbye, and then I turned around to face the purple flames and I stepped through them. Once I had gotten through, I turned around, but I couldn't see Harry anymore, so instead, I stepped carefully around the troll and ran back into the chess room to find Ron.

Ron was lying exactly where we had left him, the broken pieces of the chessmen remained scattered all around. I ran over to him and bent down to see how he was doing. He was breathing, which was good, but he was still unconscious. I began to shake him, trying to get him to wake up, but it was no use. I called out his name, but he still didn't wake. I tried dragging him, but I've never been particularly strong, and he was too heavy for me to get very far with. Finally, I collapsed beside him and tried to decide how to proceed. I could continue on my own, I supposed, but I hated leaving Ron here all alone.

Then, suddenly, I had an idea. I pulled out my wand, and hoped it would work. I hadn't tried it yet on anything heavier than a book, and it was supposed to be more difficult the heavier the object was. I pointed my wand at Ron, and focusing as hard as I could, I said, "_Wingardium Leviosa_."

After a moment of twitching on the ground, Ron's body slowly rose into the air next to me. I tried making him move back and forth, and it worked. Smiling, I pointed my wand towards the exit and levitated Ron's body ahead of me and down the short corridor. When I reached the room with the keys, though, I realized I had a problem.

In order to get out of here, I was going to have to fly. That was the only way to get all the way up to the trapdoor and past Fluffy. But I couldn't continue to levitate Ron while I was on a broomstick. I could barely fly at all, and I would need both of my hands to hold onto the broomstick.

I supposed I could try to get Ron onto the broomstick with me, but the chances of one of us sliding off the broom was too high for me to risk it. As I continued to look up at the keys, hoping to get some inspiration, I heard a loud thud.

"Ouch," a voice said from behind me. I spun around to find Ron sitting up on the floor, rubbing his right arm. While I had been trying to figure out how to get out of here, I had forgotten that I was levitating Ron and I had lowered my wand, causing him to crash to the floor.

"Oh, Ron, I'm sorry!" I cried, running over to him. "Are you ok?" I asked, looking at the arm he was rubbing.

"M'fine," he replied. "Next time you want me to wake up though, I'd appreciate it if you didn't drop me from twenty feet in the air."

"Twenty feet?" I exclaimed. "It couldn't have been much more than four!" I could see that Ron was laughing, so I knew he was joking, but I was still worried about his injuries. He was cut up and bruised from the chess game, and now I had dropped him, which I'm sure had caused more bruising.

"Wait, Hermione, where's Harry?" Ron asked, finally remembering what was going on. "Why are we back here? What about Snape?"

I explained as quickly as I could about the potions and that Harry had gone on and that we had to owl Dumbledore before it was too late, and then Ron got up and we got on a pair of brooms and flew out to the room with the Devil's Snare.

I was fine until we got to where the trapdoor was, but I was flying too low to get through it. Ron was much higher than me, and he tried to coax me up, but I was having difficulty convincing my broom to rise. Finally, Ron flew down and pulled me onto his broom, which I'm sure wasn't easy, and he flew us up and all the way out of the room Fluffy was in, only stopping once we had reached the staircases.

Once we were back on the ground, we began to run towards the owlery. The corridors were very empty, and it wasn't until I remembered that it was after curfew that this made sense. As we got closer to the front of the school, we began to hear footsteps coming towards us. I panicked. If we got caught, we would surely be too late to save Harry. Before we had a chance to hide, Professor Dumbledore came rushing around the corner.

I don't know how he knew what was going on, or why he wasn't upset that we were in the corridors after curfew, but he asked if Harry had gone after Snape and then he hurried away towards the third floor corridor.

"I suggest you head to the hospital wing, Mr. Weasley," I heard him say just as he rounded the corner on the other end of the hall.

Without much further conversation, Ron and I headed to the hospital wing like Dumbledore suggested. When we walked in, Madam Pomfrey almost had a fit.

"Mr. Weasley, how on earth did you end up in this state?" she asked, horrified. We tried to explain, but she didn't really understand what we meant about a giant chess game, and it was clear she hadn't known that the Philosopher's Stone was being kept at Hogwarts.

She led Ron to a hospital bed and began to fix his wounds. She told us that they weren't deep, so he would be fine in about an hour, but since it was the middle of the night, she said we would have to remain in the hospital until morning, as it was against the rules to wander around after curfew.

Once she had finished dealing with Ron, she insisted on examining me too, though I assured her I was fine. Apparently, though, I was wrong. I had a few cuts on my arms that I hadn't even noticed, and Madam Pomfrey insisted on giving us both a Calming Draught.

After she was done with that, she told us to lie down on the beds and sleep, as she had done all that she could. I wanted to go and find Harry and make sure he was alright. I wanted to run around and scream in frustration that I was being absolutely no help by lying on this bed. Unfortunately, I could do neither of these things, and all I could do was lie there and worry and hope that everything would be okay. Ron fell asleep almost right away, but I wasn't surprised after what he had been through.

As I waited, I watched the door. Madam Pomfrey had gone back to her own bed, but I knew that Harry would be coming through that door sometime. I could only hope he would be alive when he did.

Finally, after what felt like ages, but was probably only about an hour or so, Professor Dumbledore barged in, carrying a limp Harry in his arms. When I saw him, my heart almost stopped. He couldn't be dead, he just couldn't. Not after everything that had happened. Dumbledore deposited him on a bed and woke Madam Pomfrey. She came rushing out and immediately began to tend to Harry. Dumbledore said something to her, and then he was gone again.

I rushed over to Harry's bed; Ron was still asleep. Madam Pomfrey was fixing some of Harry's minor cuts and bruises, but I could see a very significant gash in his shoulder, and he appeared to have lost a lot of blood. I sat in the chair opposite Madam Pomfrey and watched as she worked.

"Is he…?" I tried to ask, but I couldn't bring myself to ask the question.

"He'll be fine," was her response. When she said this, I felt a heavy weight I hadn't realized was there lift off of my shoulders. If Harry had died, I don't know what I would have done. He was one of my only friends. Not to mention the guilt I would have felt for letting him go on alone. The fact that he would be alright made my heart soar.

Madam Pomfrey moved onto his shoulder and performed some kind of spell. Then she bandaged it up and force-fed him a potion, though I don't know what it was. Finally, she was finished.

"Well, I've done all that I can do for now, it's just a matter of when he wakes up," she said. She returned to her office, and I noticed that she remained at her desk rather than going back to bed. I continued to sit by Harry's side, hoping he would wake up soon.

At some point, Dumbledore returned and had a long talk with Madam Pomfrey in her office. When they were finished, he came back out, smiled at me, and left yet again. Madam Pomfrey told me to go to bed, so I returned to the bed next to Ron, and she also went back to bed. Eventually, I was able to go to sleep.


	18. Going Home

Chapter 18: Going Home

The next morning, when I woke up, I immediately went to see if Harry was awake, but he wasn't. I asked Madam Pomfrey if he had woken up at all and she told me he hadn't. She also told me that she had given Ron something to sleep longer after Professor Dumbledore explained what he had been through. Apparently, he needed rest. I wanted to stay in the hospital with them, but she refused, so I was forced to leave and go to the Great Hall for breakfast.

When I got to the Gryffindor table, I saw that Neville was sitting alone, and I remembered the curse I had performed on him the night before, and again, I felt horrible. I went over to sit with him and tried to apologize.

"Listen Neville, about last night," I began. "I'm really sorry about cursing you, it's just that Harry, Ron and I, we really had to leave last night and…"

I realized I wasn't doing a very good job of explaining myself, so I decided to tell him the whole story. When I was finished, Neville just stared at me.

"Neville?" I asked.

"You're serious? That actually happened?" he asked, his face one of amazement.

"Yes, but Neville, promise you won't tell anyone? I don't know if we're supposed to keep it quiet or not," I said, realizing Professor Dumbledore might not want everyone knowing about this.

After breakfast, I returned to the hospital wing to check on Harry and Ron. Ron had apparently just woken up, and Madam Pomfrey was trying to force him to drink some potion. When Madam Pomfrey was done tending to Ron, she sent us away, telling us that Harry wouldn't be awake anytime soon.

When we entered Gryffindor Tower, we were met by applause. I looked around and I saw Neville standing to the side, an apologetic look on his face. I surmised that he told someone about last night and that now everyone knew. Someone asked where Harry was and I told them that he was still unconscious in the hospital wing, which seemed to dampen everyone's mood a bit.

As soon as I could, I escaped the common room and headed up to my dormitory, where I hoped I could get a little bit of sleep. Lavender and Parvati followed me up and began to ask me millions of questions. Apparently now that I'd helped to saving the world from the return of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, I was finally cool.

But I ignored them and pulled the hangings of my bed closed. Eventually, I heard them return downstairs, and I was able to go to sleep.

Ron and I visited the hospital wing every three hours or so over the next two days, as classes had finished and we were free to do what we wanted, but still Harry didn't wake. A few times, we crossed paths with Professor Dumbledore, coming or going from the wing. We attended the last Quidditch game of the season – Gryffindor versus Ravenclaw. Without Harry on the team, Gryffindor played horribly and Ravenclaw won.

Finally, on the third day, when we entered the hospital wing, Madam Pomfrey informed us that Harry was awake. Madam Ponfrey reluctantly gave us five minutes to talk to Harry before she forced him to rest some more, and we hurried behind the curtains surrounding his bed to see how our friend was doing.

Once ascertaining that Harry seemed alright, Ron and I insisted he tell us what had happened after I left him in the room with the potions.

I was shocked to find out that it was Professor Quirrell and not Professor Snape who had been trying to steal the stone, though I now understood why I hadn't seen Professor Quirrell in the past few days. When Harry told us what was under Professor Quirrell's turban, I screamed out loud and I got a hard look from Madam Pomfrey.

Then Harry asked about us, so I explained how I had gone back for Ron and running into Professor Dumbledore in the hall. We talked for a little longer, and then Madam Pomfrey came over and forced Ron and me out, claiming that we had stayed ten minutes longer than she'd intended.

0o0o0o0o0o0

The next day was the end-of-year feast. The Great Hall was decorated in Slytherin colors, as they had the most house points, and therefore won the house cup. But then Professor Dumbledore stood up and awarded a total of a hundred and seventy points to Harry, Ron, Neville, and I, making Gryffindor the winner of the year-long competition.

My eardrums were ready to burst from the amount of noise issuing from our table. I stood and cheered with the rest of my house, a huge smile on my face. I didn't think I could get any happier. Especially after being awarded fifty whole points of my very own in front of the entire school. It sure made up for the points I'd lost getting caught out after curfew.

The next day, our exam results were released. I had gotten top marks in every one of my classes; some of them even over a hundred percent. I was so excited to return home and show my parents my achievement. I knew that once they saw my grades, they would finally come to accept my new life.

I felt like this was an affirmation that I really did belong in this world, even though I had only just entered it this year. Harry and Ron had gotten decent marks, and I decided it was only because of my help that they had passed at all.

Sooner than I would have thought possible, we were all packed and getting onto the Hogwarts Express and speeding home for the summer holidays. When we got to the platform, it took a while to get off the train, especially with all of our luggage, and then there was a hold-up getting through the barrier, but eventually, we got through.

When we were through the barrier and approaching Ron's family, a little girl, who I assumed was his sister was pointing at Harry, apparently very excited. Harry spoke to Ron's mother for a moment, and then a large man approached to collect Harry.

Ron and I waved as he walked away, and then I turned around and spotted my parents. I waved them over and introduced them to Ron, and Ron introduced us to his family properly. His father seemed particularly interested with my parents, and Ron explained that his father worked in the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office at the Ministry of Magic and that he was fascinated by muggles.

Finally, Ron had to tear his dad away from my parents, who I noticed were seeming a bit overwhelmed, and I promised him I'd write soon. Then dad took my trunk from me and we headed back out to the car and settled in.

"Did you have a good term?" Mum asked as Dad started the car and began to pull out of the parking lot.

"It was crazy!" I exclaimed. I hadn't written Mum and Dad since returning to Hogwarts after Christmas, and I had so many stories to tell them.

I hesitated as I tried to decide where to start. I contemplated telling them about the Philosopher's Stone and Professor Quirrell and everything but decided against it. That story could wait until Dad wasn't driving a car.

"So, there's this girl in my year, her name's Lavender," I began, starting with a more innocuous story. "And Professor Snape, he's my potions professor, he paired us up to brew herbicide potion."

"That's nice sweetie," Mum said, almost absentmindedly. "And did you have fun with your friends?"

"Don't you want to hear my story about potions class?" I frowned. Mum had totally cut me off.

"Oh, maybe another time sweetheart," Dad spoke up. "We wouldn't want you to tell all your stories now and then have nothing to talk about all summer."

"That's right," Mum agreed. "We must save some stories for another day."

"But that was only my first one…" I muttered, disappointed.

It was clear that my parents weren't over their unease with my association with the magical world. Any story that involved mention of anything magical, they just shut down right away. It was like simply hearing the words 'potion', 'charm', or 'spell' made them so uncomfortable they had to completely change the subject.

I decided that it was time to stop hoping that my parents would get over their discomfort. Obviously, it was just how they felt, and there would be no changing their minds about it. I would just have to watch what I said from now on and keep my schoolwork to myself.

It would be difficult, having to watch my words around my parents. I'd never had to filter what I said around them before, and it was going to be strange doing so now. But if that's what it took, I would do it. I was tired of this distance between us. Maybe if I stopped bringing magic up, we'd be able to be close again. At least, I hoped so.

We arrived home, and Dad helped carry my trunk up to my room, where I carefully unpacked the contents. I placed all my textbooks and school supplies inside my closet, closing the door so that they wouldn't be visible if my parents walked into the room. I'd take them out and do my homework while my parents were out at work. Whenever they were in the house, I'd keep my magical items hidden away.

A little while later, Mum called me down for dinner, and I carefully stowed my wand in the drawer of my bedside cabinet. It wasn't as though I could do magic at home anyway – there were strict rules about that. Then, I took a deep breath, and headed down the stairs as I tried to think of a story, I could tell from my time away that wouldn't reference magic or wizardry in any way.


	19. Letters

Chapter 19: Letters

_Dear Ron,_

_I promised I would write to you this summer, so here I am, writing to you. My summer's not terribly interesting yet. Mum and Dad are working, so I've begun doing my homework for school. They're planning on taking a couple of weeks off of work later in the summer to spend some time with me, but for now I'm on my own I suppose._

_As for you, I suggest you begin your homework soon, because I know you're planning on leaving it until the last minute and I can assure you that would be a bad idea. It's really not all that much, just a couple of essays. I would also suggest that you try reading some of the books on the booklist when it arrives, as it is always good to be prepared._

_I hope I hear back from you soon._

_Love from, Hermione_

I folded up the letter and inserted it into an envelope. Now that I wasn't at Hogwarts anymore, I would have to take the letters down to the post office to mail them through the muggle system. It would be my first time testing out wizard mail via muggle mail, and I was quite excited to see how quickly the mail would be delivered.

I pulled out a second roll of parchment to draft a letter to Harry.

_Dear Harry,_

_I hope you're doing alright. After unofficially meeting your uncle at King's Cross, I can understand your trepidation in returning to their house this summer. I know you said you were going to threaten your cousin back at the station, and I just hope you have the sense not to take anything too far._

_I'm alright here. I've begun working on my homework, and I urge you to do the same as the summer is sure to pass faster than you would think. I told Ron to as well, and though I'm sure he's ignoring my suggestion, I hope you won't._

_I hope to hear back from you soon._

_Love from, Hermione_

With that letter finished, I checked the time and noted that my parents would be home soon. I decided I would hold onto the letters and mail them tomorrow after my parents went to work. Instead, I set to clearing all evidence of wizardry out of my room and shoved it into the closet.

Things had been better this visit, ever since I started avoiding any mention of magic. My parents had stopped avoiding me so much, and we were getting along the way we used to, before Professor McGonagall had changed our lives.

It was hard, having to watch what I said all the time. But it was worth it.

I heard the door slam shut and immediately hurried down the stairs to greet my parents.

"How was work?" I inquired.

"Busy day today," Dad said. "Three kids have to come back for fillings, and I had a root canal this afternoon."

"Sounds like fun," I said. Whenever Mum and Dad told me about the horrific things they had to do to people's teeth, I thanked my lucky stars that they'd instilled good oral hygiene in me from a young age. While my teeth were quite crooked, they were healthy and white.

"Did you have a nice day, sweetie?" Mum asked.

I nodded. "I wrote a couple of letters to my friends," I informed them. "And I did a bit of homework."

"Are you still working on your history assignment?" Mum asked.

"No, I finished that one yesterday," I replied. "Now I'm working on… biology."

I'd taken the liberty of changing the names of my classes for my parents' benefit. History of magic was now just history. Potions had become chemistry, while transfiguration had become physics. I decided that herbology was as close as I was going to get to biology, as it was plant-based, so I decided to go with that. Mum and Dad were much more comfortable thinking of my classes in scientific instead of magical terms.

"Sounds like you're having a productive summer," Mum said. "Come into the kitchen, I'm going to get started on dinner."

Obediently, I followed Mum into the kitchen and took a seat on one of the bar stools by the island while she started chopping things.

"So, have I told you about my friend Hagrid yet?" I asked conversationally.

Mum shook her head. "I think I would have remembered a friend named Hagrid," she replied.

"Well Hagrid's just his last name," I informed her, launching into a heavily edited explanation of who Hagrid was and some of the adventures we'd had with him this year. As I talked, Mum listened and occasionally threw in a comment here or there. It was so nice, being able to talk to Mum like this again. I'd missed it over the past year.

_Dear Hermione,_

_You must be crazy! Why are you already working on homework? We have two months before we have to go back to school, that's plenty of time. And I'm not planning on reading the textbooks, no matter how much better prepared you think I'll be, so don't suggest it again. I'll read them when the chapters are assigned._

_It's good to know you'll have a couple weeks to spend just with your parents. Are you going to do anything special? I talked to Dad, and he said you and Harry are more than welcome to come stay at the Burrow with my family for the second half of the summer. I've already written to Harry, and I'm sure he'll accept seeing as he's staying with those horrible relatives. I know you want to spend time with your parents, but maybe once they're back at work you'll consider visiting?_

_Ginny's absolutely obsessed with Harry. Ever since Mum and Dad agreed to let me invite you two to the Burrow she's been asking if he's coming almost every hour. She follows me around the house now, always asking about him. She's so annoying._

_Ron_

I rolled my eyes as I came to the end of the letter. Ron had to be exaggerating. There was no way Ginny was inquiring with him every hour. And of course, she'd be excited, Harry was famous after all. He would be quite the novelty.

I pulled out a spare bit of my own parchment to draft a response.

_Dear Ron,_

_Thank you for the invitation to stay with your family, but as I have so little time here with my parents, I think I will have to respectfully decline. I've barely even seen them and soon it'll be September and we'll be on the train again. I'm sure Harry will be excited to come see you, so you won't be alone all summer._

_As for your homework, I'll stop telling you to do it, but if you leave it until the last minute, you'll regret it. I am not going to let you copy my essays and I am not going to write your essays for you, so I certainly hope you know what you're doing._

_Hermione_

I really did appreciate Ron inviting me to stay at the Burrow, and if things with my parents had still been like they were over Christmas, I'd have said yes in a heartbeat. But I was finally getting back to the relationship we'd had before, and I didn't want to mess it up by leaving so soon after getting home for the summer. I would have plenty of time to spend with Harry and Ron once we got back to school.

It was a few days before Ron owled me back. When the owl finally came, I thought it was from Harry at first and ripped the envelope open excitedly. But then I saw it was from Ron, which was good, except that it meant I still didn't know if my letter had reached Harry.

_Dear Hermione,_

_Have you heard from Harry at all? It's been a week since I owled him about staying at the Burrow and he hasn't replied. I've sent him a second letter, in case the first one got lost, but Errol returned without the letter, so I can only assume Harry received it and didn't answer._

_I don't need your help to write my essays, I can write them perfectly fine on my own, thank you very much. I'll have you know that I've already finished with the Charms essay._

_I understand that you want to spend time with your parents. I explained to Mum and Dad and they understand as well. Maybe you can stay with us another year. We'll have to go to Diagon Alley once our booklists come, maybe we can meet there and spend some time? If not, then there's the entire year at Hogwarts._

_Ron_

I frowned. Harry hadn't responded to Ron either. I'd thought at first that maybe I just had his address wrong, but the fact that he wasn't replying to either of us was highly suspicious.

_Dear Ron,_

_Harry hasn't replied to my letter either. It's a little strange, I think. I'll write to him again as soon as I've finished this letter._

_Congratulations on finishing your Charms essay. I've already done Charms, Transfiguration, Herbology and History of Magic. It's too bad we didn't get any homework for Defense Against the Dark Arts though, but I suppose since Harry killed Quirrell at the end of the year and everything, he didn't really have a chance to assign anything._

_Thanks for understanding that I want to spend time with my parents. It's just that I see them so rarely, I don't want to lose any time with them._

_I'd love to meet up in Diagon Alley! I'll have to see what my parents say about it first though. I guess they'll have to take me at some point though, as I'll need to purchase supplies for next year, as well as the new textbooks, once the list comes out. I'll let you know when I know more._

_Love, Hermione_

I put the letter to Ron aside, and focused on the letter to Harry before worrying about anything else.

_Dear Harry,_

_Why haven't you responded to my letter? I've been in correspondence with Ron and according to him; you've been ignoring his owls as well. What's going on? Is everything all right?_

_I do hope at least that you're working on your homework, the summer's not going to last that long._

_I've decided not to go to the Burrow, but Ron and I thought maybe we could all meet up in Diagon Alley to buy our books? Even if you don't want to go to the Burrow, it would be nice to see you before September._

_Please reply to me and to Ron. Ron seems worried, and I know I certainly am._

_Hermione_

Once that letter was done, I decided to head down to the post office right away to get them mailed. I didn't want to waste any time.

As I walked down the street, I thought about Ron's offer to meet up in Diagon Alley. I would have to convince my parents to take me, which I knew was going to be a challenge. I was a little reluctant to even ask, seeing how good the summer had been going so far, but I also realized that I didn't have a choice. Like I'd written in my letter to Ron, I had to go at some point, whether my parents liked it or not.

I felt my stomach start to tie itself up in knots as I started imagining the conversation, I would have to have with them someday soon. I could only hope that it didn't set us all back. We'd made so much progress.

_Dear Hermione,_

_Harry still hasn't responded, and Errol keeps coming back from Harry's empty-beaked. I'm not so sure anymore that he's ignoring us. I think something must be wrong at home, maybe it's his uncle. Harry wouldn't ignore us on purpose, I'm sure of it._

_How could you be _upset_ that there's no Defense homework? That's cause for celebration! Less homework means… less homework. Who wants more homework? That's crazy. Also, how could you already have written four essays? What are you even doing with your time? You must be sitting in your room writing all day long. We're not in school, Hermione; you need to have some fun now and then._

_Let me know if Harry owls you,_

_Ron_

Before writing Ron back, I drafted a third letter to Harry. Before, his not writing us back was only suspicious, but with Ron's latest letter, I was worried. And after the stories Harry had told us about his relatives, Ron was right. Something could be very wrong.

_Dear Harry,_

_What's going on? You haven't sent a single letter to Ron or me all summer. We're worried about you. Whatever it is your relatives are doing, can't you sneak one of us a letter to explain? We're worried, Harry, we want to know what's going on._

_Love from, Hermione_

With that letter written, I drafted a response to Ron.

_Dear Ron,_

_I think there's something seriously wrong with Harry. Do you think we should do something? Maybe send an owl to Professor Dumbledore?_

_As for my study habits, no I am not spending all my time in my room, I just happen to be more responsible than you, and I don't want to be stuck writing my essays on the train. Also, if we don't have any Defense homework, we're going to forget what we've learned. The point of summer homework is so that we don't forget what we learned in the past year._

_I'm becoming very worried about Harry. Let me know what you think we should do._

_Love, Hermione_

"Honey?" Mum appeared in my doorway. "Dinner's ready."

"Coming," I declared, jumping up and leaving the letters on the table. I would mail them tomorrow.

I headed down to dinner and joined Dad at the table while Mum served our plates.

"Anything interesting going on with your friends?" Dad inquired.

I shrugged. "Well Harry still hasn't written either Ron or I back yet," I said.

"I'm sure he's just busy," Dad assured me.

I nodded. I hadn't told Mum or Dad about Harry's situation. To explain would have required going into detail about why Harry's relatives mistreated him like they did, and that would have just opened a kettle of fish I didn't want opened.

"Ron's doing alright though," I added. "He's excited that we didn't get any summer homework from our self-defence class." I was referring, of course, to defence against the dark arts.

"No homework?" Dad frowned. "How will you keep up in the two months you have off without any homework?"

I shrugged. "Well I'll be re-reading my textbook, and once I get the new one, I'll be studying that. Ron on the other hand will probably show up having forgotten everything we learned."

"How could a teacher be so irresponsible as to not assign anything over the summer holidays?" Dad wondered.

"Well…" I hesitated. "Professor Quirrell had a lot going on at the end of the year. He wasn't really in any position to be coming up with homework assignments. In fact, they're going to be replacing him this year."

"I should hope so," Dad affirmed. "A teacher that doesn't set homework is not a very good teacher."

"Yeah," I nodded. "There were a few things that weren't all that great about Professor Quirrell." I thought about the small detail of having He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named latched onto the back of his head and shivered. That particular detail was one I wouldn't be sharing with Mum and Dad.

_Dear Hermione,_

_I'm going to send one last owl to Harry and if he doesn't respond within three days, I'm going to do something. I agree that something must be seriously wrong; I didn't like the look of his uncle back at King's Cross._

_I'm not so sure summer homework can have any justification at all, and I don't believe any of your "remembering" business. They give us summer homework to torture us, there's no other explanation._

_Percy's being a major git and he won't let me have any fun until at least half my essays are written. I don't know why Mum and Dad had to put him in charge of me while they went to the village today. Fred and George got out of doing their homework somehow, but they won't help me, so they're gits too._

_Ginny still won't stop talking about Harry. She keeps pestering me about when he's coming to stay. I wish she wasn't so annoying; be glad you don't have irritating siblings._

_Ron_

A few days later, before I had responded to the first, Ron sent me a second letter.

_Dear Hermione,_

_Harry hasn't replied, so I've decided it's about time we went to get him. I've got some help, don't worry, and hopefully, he'll be safe and at the Burrow by tomorrow morning._

_Wish us luck,_

_Ron_

While I worried about what Ron might do, I also knew that whatever he had planned I wouldn't be able to stop, so I decided I wasn't going to bother trying. I let Ron's owl fly away as usual, as I would be using the muggle post office to mail my return letter later.

My booklist for second year had also arrived today, which meant it was time to schedule a day to visit Diagon Alley. So, sucking up a breath, I headed down to the den, where Mum and Dad were reading, to talk to them about the touchy subject.

"Hey Mum, Dad," I greeted them, hovering in the doorway.

"Hermione, come in," Mum said, gesturing to an empty chair.

Nervously, I entered the room and sat down.

"I have something to ask you both," I said, gathering all my Gryffindor courage.

"Anything Hermione," Dad replied encouragingly.

I sucked in a breath and then expelled it. "Well my booklist for next year was delivered today," I informed them. "So, I'm going to need to go shopping soon. For my books and some other… things."

"I see," Dad said, immediately clamming up. "And I suppose…"

"I'll have to go shopping in Diagon Alley, yes," I agreed. "My friends want to meet up when we go. Ron will be with his family, and I was really hoping… well that maybe you'd both come with me, and then you could meet my friends?"

"I don't know, Hermione," Mum said hesitantly. "Your father and I have a lot going on, I'm not sure we have the time to spend an afternoon doing your… school shopping."

I felt my spirits dropping. "Please?" I begged. "It would really mean a lot to me."

I watched as Mum and Dad exchanged a look and breathed a sigh of relief when they finally agreed. I'd been afraid that I'd have to explain to Harry and Ron why my parents didn't feel the need to accompany their twelve-year-old daughter shopping, but now I didn't need to.

I immediately ran back up to my room and drafted a letter to Harry and Ron both, addressing it to the Burrow, as I figured Harry would be there by the time it arrived. I told them the date my parents had agreed to take me shopping and asked them to meet me. Then I put the letter to the side, determining that I would mail it first thing in the morning, and went to bed in high spirits.


	20. Diagon Alley

Chapter 20: Diagon Alley

Wednesday morning, I woke up early and eagerly dressed in my school robes, excited to enter the wizarding world again after a month in the muggle world. I was also looking forward to seeing Harry and Ron. Ron never really explained what had happened with Harry in his letter, and I was very curious.

I was also excited just to be seeing my friends again. In the month I had spent with my parents and spending time on my own in town or in my room, I had become a little lonely. Before I had friends, I didn't feel lonely when I was alone, probably because I had never experienced friendship. I missed it. Letters are great but being with your friends is much better.

I was anxious all through breakfast, and then finally, around ten thirty, my parents were finally ready, and we left for Diagon Alley. They both seemed a little nervous, but I assured them that everything would be fine.

We entered the alley through the Leaky Cauldron and then headed for Gringotts, to meet Harry and Ron. When we got there, I discovered that we had arrived first, so we stood at the top of the steps, outside the bank and waited for the others.

"Are they going to be arriving anytime soon?" Dad wondered, checking his watch. "I have other things to do today."

"Dad, come on, you promised," I groaned. "One day, just for me, to buy my supplies and meet my friends. Then we can spend the entire rest of the summer at home talking about dentistry and such."

I started looking around the Alley, hoping to locate either Harry or Ron or one of Ron's family when I saw Harry and Hagrid emerging from the crowd, so I ran down to meet them.

As it turned out, Harry had somehow messed up the floo network and had ended up in Knocturn Alley instead of Diagon Alley. I shivered at the thought of having to wander through such a sketchy place. Good thing Hagrid had found him and brought him back.

I introduced my parents to Harry and Ron, as well as Ron's family, and Mr. Weasley immediately sucked my parents into a conversation. As I understood from Ron, Mr. Weasley was obsessed with muggles and muggle artefacts. I found myself hoping that he would be able to occupy my parents so that I could actually enjoy my day without having to worry about them.

We went into the bank and my parents and I headed to the exchange counter to change our Muggle money for wizard money. Harry and Ron followed the Weasleys down to their vaults. I was actually a little jealous of them, for having vaults in Gringotts. I supposed when I was older, I would open up my own vault. I was sure it would be fascinating to go underground and see them.

We exchanged our money quickly and my father gave me enough to cover my books and supplies and some extra to spend during the year. When we were finished, we went back out to the steps to wait for the others. When they emerged, Mr. Weasley insisted on taking my parents for a drink, and they seemed happy enough to go off with him. Mrs. Weasley told us to meet them at Flourish and Blotts in an hour, and then Harry, Ron and I headed down the street on our own.

Harry bought us all ice creams at Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour, and Ron stared at a Quidditch window display until I had to physically drag him away from it. We went into a supply shop and bought new quills and ink and parchment. Harry and Ron insisted on going into the joke shop, where we met up with Ron's brothers briefly. We also went to the Apothecary to stock up on potions ingredients.

After an hour, we headed to Flourish and Blotts. When we got there, we discovered that Gilderoy Lockhart would be signing copies of his autobiography for the afternoon. I became very excited, as he had written seven of the eight books on the booklist.

The adults joined us, and I immediately sidled over to Mum and Dad.

"So how were your drinks with Mr. Weasley?" I wondered.

"He's quite the funny little man," Dad replied matter-of-factly. "Asked us such strange questions."

"Yes," Mum agreed. "I mean, who doesn't know what a microwave does?"

"Oh, well the Weasleys wouldn't have… I mean – the Weasleys are vey old-fashioned in their cooking styles," I amended my statement. "They reheat everything on the stove or in the oven."

Though I was sure there was also a spell for quick reheating of food, I didn't mention that to Mum and Dad. It was an unnecessary addition that could only set them off, and they seemed in such a good mood.

"And he seemed very interested in our jobs," Dad added. "Asked us so many detailed questions. Why, I wouldn't be surprised if he wanted to pursue a career in dental hygiene."

I nodded and tried not to laugh at the idea of Ron's dad becoming a dentist.

I was glad that Mum and Dad had had a good afternoon. I'd been worried that today might go really poorly, but it seemed that spending the day with Mr. Weasley had been the right call. Instead of talking about wizardry and magic, Mr. Weasley had spent the whole day quizzing them about non-magical things, and the conversation had never drifted into dangerous territory.

At that moment, Gilderoy Lockhart came out from the back room and sat at the table that was set up, and a photographer came and began taking pictures of him. Ron muttered something when the photographer stepped on his foot, which caused Lockhart to look up and he spotted Harry.

He immediately insisted that Harry join him for the photo session.

"Why is your friend having his picture taken with that man?" Mum leaned over and whispered to me while everyone's attention was on Harry.

"I'll explain later," I sighed. I'd tried to explain about Harry's fame to Mum and Dad once, but they hadn't really understood. To them, fame was for movie stars, or musicians, or authors. Fame wasn't for people who defeated dark wizards.

As Harry posed uncomfortably for the photos with Lockhart, the man informed the room at large that he would be taking over as defence against the dark arts professor, at Hogwarts this year. Now I understood why we had to buy seven of Gilderoy Lockhart's books. I looked forward to reading them and discovering who this man even was and what he had done. It certainly seemed like he'd done a whole lot.

Harry make his way away from Lockhart and reach Ginny, where he dumped all the free books he had been given into her cauldron, presumably as he wanted to buy his own. I saw Malfoy approach him and Ginny, and Ron and I began to fight our way over to where they stood. It was difficult as we were each carrying stacks of the books we needed to purchase.

As usual, Malfoy was rude, insensitive, and just trying to make trouble. When Mr. Weasley tried to break up the altercation, Malfoy's father showed up and the two parents started in on each other. It got to the point that Mr. Weasley launched himself at Mr. Malfoy and Hagrid ended up appearing and having to pull them off each other.

Filled with trepidation, I chanced a glance over at my parents, who were visibly shaking. I sighed. After the display that had just gone on, I suspected that they weren't going to be keen on ever returning to Diagon Alley with me in the future.

"Mum, Dad, come on," I said, leading them out onto the street. "Don't worry about that."

"What was going on back there?" Dad asked. "Was that man talking about us?"

I felt my heart sink. I'd hoped that they wouldn't have picked up on Mr. Malfoy's comment about muggles.

"Oh, it's nothing," I assured them. "The Malfoys are just ignorant gits."

"Hermione, language!" Mum cried.

I grimaced. It seemed that spending so much time with Harry and Ron was starting to rub off on me.

We returned to the Leaky Cauldron, where Harry and the Weasleys travelled back to the Burrow by Floo Powder. I followed my parents out of the Leaky Cauldron and back to the car. The ride home was a quiet one, and I didn't try to break the silence. While today hadn't been a total disaster, it could have gone better. I worried that all the progress we'd made over the past month would be erased after our run-in with the Malfoys.

I decided to give my parents some space when we got home and I headed up to my room to start reading my new textbooks. I chose _Gadding with Ghouls_ as my first read and smiled when I cracked it open for the first time and the smell of crisp, clean pages wafted up to my nose.

As I read, I discovered that Gilderoy Lockhart really was pretty amazing. He'd done so many amazing things, I couldn't believe he was so young and yet so accomplished. No wonder Professor Dumbledore had hired him. With this kind of resume, he was perfect for the post of defence against the dark arts.

When I went down to dinner later, I could see that Mum and Dad were feeling better and that they had settled down. Mum began to serve the chicken onto our plates, and we sat down at the table.

"So, Hermione," Mum said, and I could feel my stomach twisting up. I didn't want to have to explain about pureblood prejudice and all of that. "Did you have a nice day with your friends?" she asked.

I almost laughed out loud in relief. Maybe all my worrying had been for nothing. It wasn't as though Mum and Dad had witnessed a wand fight, after all. It had been a run-of-the-mill physical brawl and nothing more. Frightening when you didn't know what was going on, but not the end of the world.

"I did," I nodded. "And I got everything I need for school as well. Which is great timing, because I've just finished all my summer homework, and now I can focus on reading all my new textbooks."

"Excellent," Dad smiled. "That's our Hermione."

I smiled widely at that. Our Hermione. I got a warm feeling inside me just hearing it. Whatever had happened today hadn't changed anything. Everything was just as it should be.


	21. Missing

Chapter 21: Missing

The rest of the summer passed very quickly, and before I knew it, it was September the first and it was time to go to King's Cross. When we got to the barrier, the three of us went through it in a line. I looked around the platform, but I could see that Harry and the Weasleys weren't there yet. They still had twenty minutes, and I figured they were just running a little late.

I hugged Mum and Dad goodbye and Dad helped heave my trunk onto the train. I felt pretty good about where we were leaving things this time around. Things still got a little weird from time to time, like when we'd had to run through a magical barrier to get to the train, but most of the time we were good. I felt sure that when I saw them for Christmas this year, it would be just like old times.

After saying our goodbyes, I found an empty compartment and settled my stuff in it, and then I returned to the platform. There were only about five minutes left before the train was set to leave and I hadn't seen Harry, Ron, or any of his brothers.

Just then, I saw Percy come through the barrier, followed by Fred and George. I headed in that direction, and Ron's parents emerged with Ginny, but Harry and Ron did not follow them. The train whistle blew, and though I was worried that Harry and Ron hadn't come through, I had to get back on the train lest it leave without me.

I helped Ginny with her trunk, and we both got onto the train before it started to move. I continued to watch the barrier, but Harry and Ron never came through it. I saw a worried Mr. and Mrs. Weasley eying it as well.

"Ginny, where are Harry and Ron?" I asked the girl.

Ginny shook her head. "They were right behind us," she insisted. "Ron's supposed to sit with me. Where am I supposed to sit if they missed the train?"

Shaking my head at Ginny's messed up priorities, I searched my brain for an explanation as to why Harry and Ron hadn't made it onto the platform.

As I did, someone came up behind me, crying "Hermione! " I turned around and found that it was Neville.

"Hello Neville," I said, and I decided we ought to get out of the corridor. "Come on, let's go sit down. Ginny, you can come with us."

I led Neville and Ginny back to my compartment and the two lugged in their things and settled in.

"Neville," I said, "this is Ginny. Ginny, this is Neville," I said, introducing them.

They smiled at each other and Neville nodded his head. Then he turned back to me. "Where are Harry and Ron?" he asked.

"I don't know," I said, "Ginny said they were right behind her, but they never came through the barrier. Maybe we should go look for them," I suggested. I hoped that at least they were somewhere on the train and that I had just missed them.

Neville and Ginny agreed to come with me, and so we began to walk down the train, looking in the various compartments.

We came across Seamus, Dean, Lavender, Parvati, Sally-Anne, and Lily all together in one compartment a little way down and stopped to talk for a minute but continued on our way pretty quickly. There was a reason we hadn't been invited to join them.

We also passed Lisa Turpin's compartment, but she was with her Ravenclaw friends, Sue Li, Kevin Entwhistle, Stephen Cornfoot, and Morag MacDougal. When I saw her in the train, I was hit with a memory of my first train ride, when I was with Neville and Lisa.

When we got to the end of the train, we still hadn't found them, so we returned to our compartment and decided that they weren't on the train. As worrisome as that was, we couldn't do anything about it. Ginny seemed exceptionally worried, and I tried to reassure her that they would be fine, and that even if they missed the train, they would get to school one way or another. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley would see to that. I was more worried about why they hadn't made it on to the train than anything else.

When lunchtime came around, I bought some pumpkin pastilles and Neville got three chocolate frogs. When Ginny shook her head that no, she didn't want anything, I passed her two of my pastilles. She took them gratefully and smiled.

When the train arrived in Hogsmeade, Neville and I followed the older years to the flying carriages, and Ginny moved nervously into the crowd of first years being called by Hagrid. They would be taking the boats to the school. Neville and I got a carriage together and sped off to Hogwarts. When we arrived, we entered the Great Hall and sat at the Gryffindor table. I looked up and down the table and around the room, but I couldn't see Harry or Ron anywhere. I watched the door, but they never turned up.

"Relax, Hermione, I'm sure they're fine," Neville said, but I wasn't all that reassured. I noticed that Fred and George weren't all that concerned with their brother's disappearance, and Percy was too far away for me to tell if he was worried or not, though he didn't look it.

Professor McGonagall announced that the Sorting would begin in a moment, and then the first years filed into the Hall. I spotted Ginny in the middle of the crowd, and I tried to catch her eye to smile encouragingly, but she never turned my way.

Professor McGonagall explained the ceremony to the first years, and then she began to call names off her list. The first student, Allen, Mary, was sorted into Hufflepuff. The first new Gryffindor was Creevey, Colin. As the sorting went on, I paid half-attention to the ceremony, and the rest of my attention was darting around the room, trying to figure out where Harry and Ron could be. While Lovegood, Luna was sorted into Ravenclaw, I noticed that Snape was absent from the head table, and I thought that rather strange.

When it was Ginny's turn to be sorted, I gave her my full attention, and when she was pronounced a Gryffindor, I clapped with the rest of the table, and smiled when she looked my way. She settled in with the rest of the first years on the end of the table, and soon the sorting was over.

The feast began, and I noticed that Professor Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall disappeared for a little while. Then Dumbledore returned with Snape, and a short while later, McGonagall came back too.

When the feast was over, I got up with the rest of the students and began to file out of the hall. I was still looking around for a sign of Harry or Ron, so I wasn't paying much attention to my immediate surroundings.

"Looking for Weasley and Potter?" a voice asked as I reached the doorway. I turned to see Malfoy standing in front of me.

"That's none of your business, Malfoy," I said, not wanting everyone to know that something was wrong.

"You mean you don't know where they are?" Malfoy asked, mockingly.

"What are you on about, Malfoy?" I asked, knowing he was going somewhere with this and wanting it to be over with.

"They've been expelled, Granger, _expelled_. They flew a car to school and crashed it into the Whomping Willow, and now they're expelled," Malfoy said gleefully.

I couldn't believe it. I wouldn't believe it. Harry and Ron couldn't be expelled; Malfoy was probably just making up stories. I pushed my way out of the Hall and began to run to the Gryffindor common room. If Harry and Ron were back, that's where they would be.

On my way, I saw Percy, and I realized that I didn't know the password, so I asked him what it was, and he told me it was _wattlebird_. He was leading the first years, so they were going quite slowly, and I ran ahead, wanting to get to the common room quickly. As I rounded the corner and approached the Fat Lady, I finally found Harry and Ron standing in front of the portrait.

I exploded into a mess of emotions. What came out was mostly anger – I demanded to know where they'd been and why they'd worried everyone. On the inside I was mostly just relieved. They were here, and they were alright.

To my horror, the thing about the flying car that Malfoy had mentioned was true. Though Harry and Ron weren't actually expelled, I was a little surprised that they hadn't been. What could have possessed them to take Mr. Weasley's flying car to Hogwarts? It was idiotic, moronic – and probably a lot of other words that end in -ic.

I didn't have the chance to tell them so though, because as soon as the portrait swung open, anything I was saying was drowned out by applause. Apparently, the rest of Gryffindor house found Harry and Ron's exploits to be highly amusing and worthy of congratulations.

Rolling my eyes, I headed straight to my own dorm, not interested in being a part of the celebration. While I was glad my friends weren't going anywhere, I was exceptionally annoyed with them and had no intention of letting them off the hook for this any time soon.

They needed to understand that they couldn't just go around doing whatever they wanted. We'd broken some rules together at the end of last year, but it had been for a good cause. I had no intention of letting that become a habit.


	22. The New Defence Professor

Chapter 22: The New Defence Professor

The next morning, I brought my copy of _Voyages with Vampires_ down to breakfast. I simultaneously wanted to pointedly ignore Harry and Ron in an attempt to impress upon them that what they did was wrong, and read more about Gilderoy Lockhart's adventures. Since I had gotten my books from Diagon Alley, I had read them all twice and I was astounded at all the things Lockhart had done in his life.

It seemed that most witches were taken with his for his good looks and the fact that he had won _Witch Weekly's_ Most-Charming-Smile Award five times in a row, but I found that it was his feats that were amazing.

When the post arrived, the Weasley family's owl fell into my jug of pumpkin juice. Ron had sent me letters over the summer with Errol, so I knew he was getting old and wasn't the best flier out there. I was pretty sure his time was coming, the way he kept crashing. One time, he flew straight in through my bedroom window and didn't stop until he hit the opposite wall.

As it turned out, Mrs. Weasley had sent her son a howler. Served him right, too. After what he and Harry had done, he deserved at least this. In all of last year, not one student had received a Howler, and Ron was going to have to listen to it in the middle of the Great Hall with everybody watching. I found myself quite satisfied with his punishment.

Ron opened it and it went off. Mrs. Weasley's voice screamed at him and filled all the corners of the Hall. Everybody stopped and turned to watch Ron's humiliation. Even Harry was mentioned, and I saw him look down at his lap, both trying to make it appear as though he was not a part of what was going on, but also I think, feeling more than a little guilty. Ron simply looked horrified.

When the Howler had finished and had burst into flames, it took a moment, but everyone eventually went back to their own business and the attention turned away from Ron and Harry. Ron was still staring at the ashes of the Howler as though shocked that his mother was so angry.

I decided two things in that moment. First, I decided that I quite liked Mrs. Weasley. She had the right idea about things. I don't know where Ron's penchant for rule breaking came from – maybe it was from his father's side of the family – but Mrs. Weasley had the right idea about rule breaking.

The second thing I decided was that I would let Harry and Ron off the hook. They both looked appropriately shamed, and they were each stuck with a detention as well. There was no reason to punish them forever, and I suspected that they had learned their lesson by now.

Professor McGonagall came around with our timetables, and after looking it over quickly, Harry, Ron and I left the Great Hall and headed to the greenhouses for Herbology with the Hufflepuffs. Professor Sprout wasn't there when we arrived, and soon arrived with Gilderoy – I mean, Professor Lockhart. He had apparently been helping her to fix up the Whomping Willow.

Professor Sprout announced that we would be working in Greenhouse Three, and I felt a shiver of excitement course through me at this. Greenhouse Three was supposed to be filled with much more interesting and dangerous plants than those we had worked with so far and I looked forward to learning about them all.

As we entered, Professor Lockhart called Harry back for a moment, and once we had all assembled around the Greenhouse, Professor Sprout waited until Harry had arrived to begin the lesson.

The lesson began – we were learning about Mandrakes – and I felt myself relax and ease right into the lecture. I had missed being in class during the summer, and I found raising my hand and answering questions refreshing, finally able to share some of the knowledge I had acquired during my summer reading.

After the lecture part of the class, there was a demonstration, and then we began to practice repotting Mandrakes. Harry, Ron and I were joined at our tray by Justin Finch-Fletchley, a Hufflepuff, who shook my hand and complemented me, making me smile widely. It's not a lot of people who take the time to notice me outside of my immediate group of friends.

We didn't get to talk to him for long as we had to put on our earmuffs, and by the end of the class, I was glad we were going to Transfiguration and that we would be using our wands instead of our hands.

I spent the majority of lunch color-coding my timetable. I tried stealing Harry and Ron's timetables to color-code them too, but the boys refused to give them up.

When Ron asked what we had that afternoon, I told him immediately that we had Defence Against the Dark Arts. I had been very much looking forward to the class, as it would be our first with our new professor. He was bound to be a much better teacher than Professor Quirrell had been, and not just because he didn't have a dark wizard growing out the back of his head.

Ron saw my timetable and noticed that I had drawn hearts around each of Professor Lockhart's classes. I hadn't really done it consciously. As I was colour coding my timetable, they had just happened. I grabbed my timetable away from Ron, my face heating up in embarrassment.

After we ate, we still had some time before class, so we went out into the courtyard and I went back to reading _Voyages with Vampires_. A small boy, who I vaguely recognized from the Sorting came over and introduced himself as Colin Creevey. He began to talk to Harry, but I remained focused on my book. Then Malfoy came over, but I only had two paragraphs left of the chapter I was on, so I chose not to pay attention to what was going on around me.

It was a truly fascinating read. Upon hearing rumors of a vampire terrorizing a village in Northern England, Professor Lockhart had embarked upon a mission to not only protect the village, but the vampire as well.

Where most vampire hunters would have simply exterminated the creature to neutralize the threat, Professor Lockhart had, through a combination of great skill and cunning, tricked the vampire into drinking a potion that would quell his thirst for human blood, and then cast a complicated spell to make it so that the vampire would be able to survive as long as he ate a great deal of lettuce.

It was revolutionary, in that it was one of the first accounts of dealings with feral vampires that did not end in death for the vampire. It was a monumental step towards establishing peace with the creatures. Professor Lockhart had even appeared at a couple of events for the Society for the Tolerance of Vampires after publishing his book.

When I finished reading, I shut my book and looked up to see that Ron was preparing to curse Malfoy and that Professor Lockhart was approaching. I quickly warned Ron, not wanting him to get a second detention before serving his first. Especially not for cursing someone as uninteresting as Malfoy.

When Lockhart arrived, he had Colin take a picture of him and Harry – apparently the whole fuss had been because Colin wanted a picture. Then Lockhart began to steer Harry along with him as he entered the castle and Ron and I were left behind to gather up our things and follow, as we did have Defence next.

When we arrived in the classroom, we found Harry sitting in the back of the class, hiding behind his seven textbooks. I felt a little bad for him – it's no secret that Harry hates the fame that comes with his name – but I also found the situation altogether amusing. I could have laughed, but I didn't, because Professor Lockhart was starting the class, and I focused all my attention on him.

He started by handing out a quiz with fifty four questions on it. I smiled excitedly, and began to fill it out. I loved pop quizzes. And I knew that there would be a reward for having read through all of Professor Lockhart's books thoroughly before the start of term. Harry and Ron surely wouldn't make fun of me in the future for reading ahead.

When half an hour had gone by – I had finished after fifteen minutes and had spend the second half of the time looking it over – Professor Lockhart collected the quizzes and began to look through them. When he got to mine, he praised me for knowing his secret ambition, then looked over the rest of it and announced that I had received full marks. Then he gave me ten points for Gryffindor. I felt a rush of pride that was familiar, and yet different. I was honored to be recognized by such a famous and distinguished wizard.

Then he began to teach. There was a cage at the front of the room, and he told us he would be teaching us how to fight dark creatures. I wondered with curiosity and a bit of apprehension as to what was in the cage. Perhaps an Erkling, which lures children to it with a high-pitched cackle to be eaten, or maybe a Pogrebin, a demon that makes their prey fall into a state of despair before attempting to devour them.

Professor Lockhart pulled the cover off of the cage to reveal a cage full of Cornish Pixies. As far as I was aware, they weren't so much dangerous as they were irritating and destructive, but I trusted that our teacher had a good reason for bringing them to class. Before any of us had a chance to prepare, Lockhart opened the cage and released them into the room – a test I supposed, to see how we would face up to them.

Everything went crazy. The pixies began wreaking havoc on the room and students ran away from them screaming. A few of them even pulled Neville up to the ceiling by his ears and hung him from the candelabra. Finally, Professor Lockhart pulled out his wand and said an incantation I had never read about, but the pixies grabbed his wand, and I could only assume they had interrupted the spell.

The bell rang, and everyone began to run for the door. Harry, Ron and I were the last ones there, and Professor Lockhart asked us to round up the pixies, as he rushed into his office.

I was overwhelmed by the trust and level of responsibility he'd bestowed upon us. I suspected that my having got the top grade on his quiz had something to do with him giving me the task of rounding up the pixies. It was obvious that the quiz had been a test – if I could remember something like his favorite color, then I had obviously also read and remembered the more important aspects of the book.

I raised my wand and used a freezing charm on a couple of pixies that were coming my way, and put them back in the cage. It wouldn't be very helpful if Professor Lockhart took care of the pixies, then we would never learn. This was great experience, and probably next class, Harry, Ron, and I would be praised for succeeding in our task instead of running away like the rest of the class.

Harry seemed to think that Professor Lockhart had given us the task because he himself was incapable of completing it, but I couldn't believe that. He's fought vampires and werewolves and trolls and all sorts of horrible creatures. Pixies would be easy for him. But as a teacher, it wouldn't be constructive to just show us how to do something. This hands-on approach was much better.


	23. Mudblood

Chapter 23: Mudblood

We didn't have much time during our first week back, so when the weekend finally arrived, Harry, Ron and I decided it was time to go to visit Hagrid. We had planned on going Saturday morning, so when I awoke, I dressed to go outside, and then descended to the common room. Ron came down a few moments later with a note in his hands from Harry saying that he had to go to Quidditch practice.

Ron and I decided to go watch the practice, and then head to Hagrid's afterwards with Harry. When we arrived, the pitch was empty, so we assumed they had finished practice and were getting cleaned up.

I followed Ron into the stands, and we sat down to wait for Harry. The first-year boy, Colin Creevey, was sitting high up in the stands as well, holding his camera.

"Hey, you're Harry Potter's friends, aren't you?" Colin called down to us when he saw me looking.

I nodded and turned away, but he continued.

"Do you think Gryffindor will win this year? I think they will, especially with Harry on the team. I hear he's an amazing flier. I've never flown, I don't even have a broom," he said.

I was going to turn around and answer him. After all, that would be the polite thing to do, but that was when the Gryffindor team emerged from the changing rooms, wearing their Quidditch gear.

As it turned out, they hadn't even started practicing yet. They'd spend the entire morning thus far learning new maneuvers from their captain, Oliver Wood. I wondered how many different moves they could have learned that would have taken over an hour. Sure, Quidditch isn't exactly something I'm very familiar with, but it the theory seems simple enough; throw the Quaffle, hit the Bludgers, catch the Snitch.

Up at the top of the stands, Colin had begun taking pictures of the team practicing, which I noticed had caused a bit of a panic for Wood, thinking that he was a spy, but this was all disregarded when the actual Slytherin Quidditch team strode out onto the pitch.

Wood flew over to where they were standing and landed. The rest of the team followed. They began to argue about something, but they were too far away for me to hear.

"What do you reckon this is all about?" Ron asked, leaning forward, trying to get a better view. Then the older Slytherin players stepped aside, and Malfoy strode forward, dressed in Quidditch robes like the rest of them. I did a quick head count and realized in horror that Malfoy was the seventh member of the group, and therefore must be on the team.

When Malfoy had been revealed, Ron had stood up and began to make his way out of the stands. I quickly jumped up and tried to pull him back.

"Ron, leave it alone, this doesn't concern you," I insisted.

"It's Malfoy," Ron practically snarled.

"Yes, but this is about Quidditch," I insisted. "Leave it to the captains to argue and stay out of it."

Shockingly, Ron didn't listen to me, and instead marched right up to Malfoy and the rest of the Slytherins, demanding to know what Malfoy was doing with them.

As I suspected, Malfoy had made the Slytherin team. It also seemed that his father had purchased brooms for the entire team – a coincidence I suspected wasn't much of a coincidence at all. When Malfoy started insulting Ron and his family for their lack of money, I found myself jumping into the argument almost involuntarily.

And then, all of a sudden, there was chaos.

Fred and George lunged at Malfoy, and the Slytherin captain, Flint, had to dive in between them to stop them strangling him. Alicia was shrieking and Angelina and Katie were staring at Malfoy in shock, their eyes wide. Ron had grabbed his wand and cast a curse at Malfoy.

I found myself taking a step back in shock as I watched everything unfold. I tried to remember what had even been said. I'd made a comment about Malfoy having to but a place on the team, and then he'd made some sort of rude comment. He'd called me filthy – a filthy little Mudblood if I remembered correctly. I wasn't 100% sure what it meant, but it was clear that it wasn't complimentary.

Ron's wand was still broken from when it got smashed upon his and Harry's arrival to school, and the curse he tried to cast at Malfoy backfired and hit him square in the gut. He flew backwards and landed sprawled on the ground.

Forgetting about the rest of the Quidditch team, who were still engaging in hostilities, I ran to Ron and crouched down next to him in fear, wondering what curse he'd been attempting and how screwed up it may have gotten when it backfired.

Ron looked up at me in fear, his face going pale, and then he opened his mouth and turned to his side. Three medium-sized slugs fell out of his mouth and I had to swallow back a tiny bit of bile that started to rise in my throat at the sight.

I didn't know what to do. In addition to the spell backfiring, it seemed that it had also been miscast. Instead of the steady stream of twenty slugs that was supposed to fall from his mouth before the spell wore off, he was burping them up two or three at a time and it seemed that they weren't stopping.

I had read about this spell in the very back of _The Standard Book of Spells, Grade Two_, and it was supposed to be on the curriculum for the end of the year. It was a very difficult spell, almost third year material. I wondered how Ron had come across it. I had of course, encouraged him to read the textbooks before the beginning of term, but he had refused me point blank. This suggested that maybe he actually had taken my advice and read a little bit in advance. Upon realizing this, I felt a kind of warmth spread through me, but it didn't last more than a microsecond as Ron was still lying on the ground burping up slugs.

By mutual agreement, Harry and I each took a side, and together we heaved Ron up and began steering him towards Hagrid's. Not only was it closest, but Hagrid would surely know what to do. And even if he didn't, at least he was an adult.

When we got to Hagrid's, Professor Lockhart was just leaving, and Harry began to pull us into the bushes to avoid him. Harry had been trying to avoid him all week. I thought about protesting. After all, Lockhart was a teacher, he could probably help us. In the end, I hid with Harry and Ron, mostly because I knew that Ron didn't like Lockhart much either and he was the one who needed to help.

After a single look at Ron, Hagrid handed him a bucket for the slugs and sat him down in a nearby chair. It was Hagrid's opinion that we just needed to wait out the spell. I was a little unsure about this – with Ron's faulty wand there was no telling whether it would ever stop on it's own – but I decided I'd wait an hour, and if it still hadn't stopped then I'd suggest Madam Pomfrey.

After a few minutes, Hagrid's curiosity finally got the best of him and he asked how Ron had ended up in his state. From the look on Hagrid's face when Ron told him what Malfoy said, I guessed that it had been even worse than I'd thought. I looked questioningly from Hagrid to Ron, and Ron acquiesced, and between the waves of slugs he was belching up, explained the term to Harry and me.

As Ron spoke, I felt my blood run cold. Mudblood. It seemed like such a simple term. Who knew that two harmless words, stuck together, could be so vulgar? I'd known there were prejudices in the wizarding world, particularly from families like Malfoy's, about muggles and muggle-born witches and wizards. I'd known that there was a selection of the wizarding world that looked down on muggles as being less than. That had been a great deal of Voldemort's campaign back when he'd been terrorizing the wizarding world, and a lot of his followers and sympathizers were likely still around.

What I hadn't realized was how deep the hatred of muggle-born children ran. I'd thought it was a disdain from association, but it was so much more than that. It was one thing to look down on someone for not having the same abilities. Not that I agreed with it, but I could understand it. But to look down on someone for being related to them? I could do magic just as well, if not better, than Malfoy could. I had just as much power, the same potential, as any student in Hogwarts.

What it boiled down to was that Malfoy saw himself as a part of the elite, and he didn't think that I had a right to be a part of that because of my background. To Malfoy, and others of his way of thinking, I didn't have a right to my magical heritage because I'd been born into the wrong family. It was the same as saying that someone born into a poor family doesn't have the right to earn money and become rich, because he wasn't born to the right parents. It wasn't about my skill, it wasn't about my abilities, it wasn't about anything that I could change. It was about who I am, on a fundamental level, and I realized in that moment that it was something I would likely spend the rest of my life fighting against.

As Harry, Ron, and Hagrid changed the subject, I found myself watching Ron with interest. When Malfoy had insulted me, he had grabbed his wand immediately. I didn't see even a split-second's hesitation. It was truly a testament to how far I'd come in the past year, that I had friends who would react like that upon hearing someone insult me. I found myself smiling, despite the situation. It felt good, knowing I was cared about.

Harry and Ron had their detentions that night, which left me to my own devices. I got a fair bit of my homework out of the way, not that there was all that much. Seeing as how it was still the start of term, most of what we were doing in classes was review of last year. When I'd finished what needed to get done, I switched to reading _Travels with Trolls_ for a while, but even that couldn't hold my attention.

I just couldn't get over everything that had happened today. It wasn't just that Malfoy had called me a mudblood – because while I did believe that he held that prejudice, the insult had probably been more about saying something truly insulting than about the meaning behind it. What troubled me was that there were countless others in the wizarding world who held those beliefs, and I had no idea who they were. For some reason, the idea of people disliking me for my parentage bothered me deeply.

I tried going to sleep, but I kept tossing and turning and eventually gave up on that. To avoid waking my dormmates and starting a very different kind of argument, I went back down to the common room and curled up on the couch, watching the flames dance in the fireplace.

Everything was going to be harder for me. Not here at Hogwarts, of course. In school all that matters are one's grades, and I had full confidence in that. But after school. I had long since been cured of the illusion that the world judged people solely based on their own merits. The world could be an unjust and cruel place. And when the time came for me to enter the wizarding world as an adult, I was going to have to face that.

If I was up for a job against a pure-blooded witch, all things being equal, would the pureblood get the job over me? If I was even more qualified than the pureblood, would her blood status be enough of a boost for them to pick her over me? Would being a muggle-born prevent me from getting certain promotions? How far would this go? And worst of all, how would I ever know whether I was being judged on my own merits or on the simple fact of my ancestry.

A noise startled me, and I peeked over the couch to see Harry returning from detention. I didn't really want to talk to him – he couldn't understand and didn't know much more about any of this than me anyway – so I ducked back behind the couch and let him head upstairs without knowing I was there.

It was only a few moments later that the portrait hole opened again, this time admitting Ron into the common room. Again, I ducked behind the couch to avoid being seen, but Ron must have noticed something, because he staggered over to me.

"Hermione?" he frowned. He didn't look good. He was cradling his right arm and was walking crooked. He was red from exhaustion, and he looked like he was ready to collapse.

"Hey Ron," I said, forcing a smile onto my face.

"What are you doing down here this late?" he frowned, shifting back and forth from one foot to the other.

I shrugged. "Couldn't sleep," I admitted. "It's fine, go rest, you look like you need it."

Ron glanced in the direction of the staircase that led to the boys' dormitories and then back at me.

"Why couldn't you sleep?" he asked.

I shook my head. "It's fine, we can talk about it in the morning. Just go to bed," I insisted.

But Ron apparently wasn't having it. He lifted my feet from the end of the couch and sat down, wincing as he did so, and then sinking back into the cushions slowly.

"Ron really, you look ready to pass out," I insisted. "Filch must have worked you to the bone. You need sleep."

"You're upset about what happened today," Ron declared, ignoring my words. "What Malfoy said."

"Since when are you so perceptive?" I muttered, more to myself than to Ron.

"What's bothering you, specifically?" Ron asked. "Because you really shouldn't take anything Malfoy says to heart. He's just bitter and mean and selfish. Who cares what he says?"

I smiled despite myself and pushed my body up into a seated position so as to properly face Ron.

"It's not that," I said. "Well it is, but it isn't. It's just – how many more people ascribe to his belief? How many people am I going to meet and they're going to make a snap judgment about me based on my parentage? How many opportunities am I going to lose?"

Ron was already shaking his head. "Hermione you're looking at this all wrong," he insisted. "Most people don't care about that stuff anymore. It's just the really old families, like Malfoy's, and there's not really that many of them left when it comes down to it."

"But they're the ones in the positions of most power," I pointed out. "They're the ones running the world, and they're never going to let someone like me run it with them."

"Hermione, trust me, if you wanted to run the world, you could," Ron insisted. "You could be Minister for Magic if that's what you wanted."

"You really think so?" I asked, touched that Ron thought so highly of me. I'd always thought he considered me more as his annoying female friend than anything else.

"Absolutely," Ron nodded. "You're top of the year, ridiculously smart, remarkably driven, exceptionally brave – "

"I'm not – "

"Last June," Ron interrupted, before I could interject. "When we went after Quirrell. You stayed calm even in the face of possible death."

"So did you," I pointed out.

"Yes, but we're talking about you right now," Ron reminded me. "Look, what I'm saying is, there's nothing you can't do if you put your mind to it. I'm not gonna lie, you'll probably face obstacles along the way. But all that's going to do is push you to be even stronger."

"You really think so?" I asked, hopefully.

Ron nodded. "Absolutely."

He glanced in the direction of the boys' dormitories again and I found myself rolling my eyes.

"Go to bed!" I cried, going to kick him off the couch and then stopping myself when I remembered that he was sore from the physical labor. "Thank you for talking to me. I feel much better now. But now it's my turn to be concerned about you, and you need sleep."

Ron nodded, and very slowly pushed himself off the couch and started stumbling towards the staircase.

"You should go to sleep too," he insisted just before the first stair.

"I will," I assured him. "I promise. In a few minutes."

Ron nodded. "G'night, Hermione."

"Goodnight Ron," I returned.


	24. Good to Be Back

Chapter 24: Good to Be Back

By the next day, I'd pushed all thoughts of Malfoy and his rude insult from my mind. Ron was right. I was strong, and smart, and I wasn't going to let something like this hold me back. Letting it define me is what people like Malfoy want, and I wasn't about to give him the satisfaction of letting it affect me.

Since the Gryffindor's Quidditch practice had been interrupted the day before, Oliver had re-booked the team practice for this morning. Ron elected to go down and watch, claiming that he should be on hand in case the Slytherins showed up again. I chose not to point out that he'd been more of a hindrance last time and instead let him go with Harry. As for myself, I just wanted a bit of time alone.

I was sitting in an armchair in the common room, continuing where I'd left off the day before in _Travels with Trolls_, when I felt someone watching me. Suspiciously, I looked up to find Ginny standing a little way away, shifting from one foot to another indecisively while staring in my direction.

"Ginny?" I asked, curious as to what it was that she wanted.

"Hey Hermione," Ginny responded.

"Did you need something?" I prompted, when she continued to just stand there.

For a moment, Ginny was silent as she debated her answer. I could see a storm of conflict in her expression. But then she shook her head and started to turn away.

"No, never mind," she declared. "It was nothing."

"Clearly it's something," I insisted. "Come on, sit down and tell me what it is."

Ginny hesitated for a moment, but finally came over and took a seat in the chair across from me. She sat down right on the edge of the seat, perched as though she were preparing to run away, and I wondered what had her so wound up.

"So, what's going on?" I asked when she didn't volunteer anything.

The younger girl just shook her head. "It's nothing really. I don't know why I even bothered to come over. It's stupid. I'm stupid."

"You're not stupid," I told her. "Is it something with school?"

If it had to do with one of her classes, I could help. I'd aced all my classes last year, after all.

Ginny shook her head. "No, nothing like that," she said.

"Alright…" I pondered for a moment. "Is it something with one of your classmates? Or maybe with your dormmates?" I'd had trouble with my dormmates last year. In fact, we still didn't get along very well, though we'd reached a mutual agreement now to keep out of each others' way.

"No, not exactly," Ginny said, shifting uncomfortably.

"Okay," I said, trying to think what else it could be. "Is it something with your family?"

This time, Ginny shook her head more assuredly. "No, everything's fine back home," she assured me.

I tried to think of another potential source of stress but couldn't think of anything. If everything was fine with her schoolwork, her classmates, and her family, then what was even left?

"It's just that – " Ginny began softly, and I leaned forward a little to hear better. "Well there's this boy."

"_Ohh_," I said, understanding flooding through me. Ginny had a crush. It wasn't something that I was familiar with personally, but I'd heard about the emotional turmoil it could cause a person. "Well that's not so bad. Just talk to him."

"_Hermione_!" Ginny said in shock. "I can't just go up and _talk to him_. Do you know how embarrassing that would be?"

"But what if he likes you too?" I inquired. It seemed very simple to me. If he liked her, then everything would be great. If he didn't, at least she'd know and could move on.

"He doesn't," Ginny shook her head sadly. "He barely even knows I exist."

"Well that's why you have to talk to him," I insisted. "So that he can know you."

"It's not that easy," Ginny claimed. "He – he's way out of my league."

"Well I'm sure that's not true," I shook my head. "You're not giving yourself enough credit."

"No, it's true," Ginny insisted. "He's really popular, and smart, and funny, and athletic. He could have any girl he wanted."

"But what if that girl was you?" I pointed out.

Ginny shook her head again. "No, he wouldn't want me. I'm nothing special. And I'm only a first year."

"Is he not a first year too?" I frowned. We'd only been back to school for a week. How had Ginny already managed to meet people outside of her year?

Ginny turned red and I realized that she hadn't meant on letting that detail slip. It was out in the open now though, and she couldn't take it back.

"Y-yeah," she admitted. "He's a second year, like you."

"Really?" I asked, immediately starting to run through the list of all the boys in my year. The Slytherins were immediately out. No way did Ginny have a crush on someone like Malfoy or one of his cronies. I decided it probably had to be a Gryffindor. She'd probably run across him in the common room sometime. There wouldn't really have been an opportunity for her to have interacted with a second year in Ravenclaw of Hufflepuff yet. "Who is it?"

Ginny turned even more red at this question and I suspected she wasn't going to tell me. It couldn't be too hard to guess though – there were only five boys to choose from. And Ron was obviously out, since he was her brother.

I frowned as I ran through the other four boys in my mind. It wasn't Neville. Ginny had said the boy she liked was popular, and Neville was anything but. She'd also said the boy was smart, funny, and athletic. And between Dean, Seamus, and Harry, only one of them was on the Quidditch team. And Ginny certainly would have had plenty of time to get to know him, given he'd lived at her house for a month prior to the start of term…

"Ginny?" I asked slowly, trying to be as sensitive as possible to the girl's feelings. "Is it – Do you like Harry?"

The mortified look on the girl's face was all the confirmation I needed. And as soon as it was confirmed, I felt my spirits sink. Ginny couldn't confess her feelings to Harry. Sure, Harry would be nice enough about it if she did, but I knew him well enough to know he didn't return those feelings, and to be turned down by Harry Potter – well I could only imagine how much that would crush the girl before me.

"Listen Ginny," I said, shifting uncomfortably in my seat as I tried to figure out what to say that wouldn't totally destroy her self-esteem. "Harry – he's a complicated person and he's dealing with a lot of stuff. For one thing, there's the fame of being _The Boy Who Lived_, and constantly dealing with people fawning over him. Then there's his family, who as I'm sure you've heard aren't the best people. And there's the pressure of classes, the pressure of Quidditch, not to mention he's still dealing with the aftereffects of everything that happened at the end of last year."

"What did happen last year?" Ginny asked. "My parents would never tell me, and Ron was so quiet the first half of the summer."

"Don't worry about it," I said, not wanting to get into everything with Quirrell. "Just – it was stressful, and more so for Harry than the rest of us. Look, what I'm saying is – I'm not sure Harry's ready for anything right now. Maybe in a few years, but for now, he just wants to play Quidditch and spend time with his friends. So maybe if you tried to just be his friend – "

"But I don't want to just be his friend," Ginny said obstinately.

"I know," I said. "But if you tried starting out as friends, then maybe in a few years, things would turn into something more."

"I don't know if I can be his friend," Ginny shook her head. "I can't even talk when I'm around him."

"Well then maybe we should start by working on that. Maybe try making friends with some of the boys in your year, and get used to talking to them, and then that'll make it easier to talk to Harry."

"I don't know – " Ginny said hesitantly.

"Yeah, it's a great idea," I nodded. "In fact, I know just the boy. He's in Gryffindor too: Colin Creevey. Do you know him?"

"The boy with the camera?" Ginny frowned.

"That's the one," I nodded enthusiastically. "He's a little obsessed with Harry too. Always follows him around trying to get photos and autographs. So at least the two of you would have something in common to talk about."

"I'm not sure – "

"Trust me," I interrupted. "I know what I'm talking about. Make friends with Colin. Get used to talking to boys. And then once you're more comfortable, you can try talking to Harry."

Ginny thought about it for a moment and then finally agreed. "Alright," she nodded. "I'll give it a try. Thanks for talking to me, Hermione."

"Don't worry about it," I smiled, glad I could be of help. "You know you can talk to me anytime, right?"

Ginny nodded, and then got up and left, probably to go and find Colin. I suspected he was probably down at the Quidditch pitch photographing Harry's practice again.

Befriending Colin would be good for Ginny, I thought. And maybe it would even provide a good distraction for Colin, so that he wasn't following Harry around all year. Because I knew that if Colin went on stalking Harry much longer, Harry was going to lose it, and that wasn't something anybody needed to see.

Harry's practice lasted until lunch, after which the boys joined me up in the common room to work on their homework. Both boys had procrastinated doing it all weekend, and now it had piled up and they had to get it done or risk losing points for not doing it.

"Game of chess?" Ron asked after about an hour and a half.

"You can't possibly be finished all your work already," I insisted.

Ron shook his head. "No, but I've finished transfiguration and herbology, which means it's time for a little break."

"You can have a break when it's all finished," I insisted. "Look, Harry's already started on charms."

"Come on Hermione, just one game?" Ron insisted.

With a sigh, I closed the book I was reading (_Gadding with Ghouls – _I'd finished _Travels with Trolls_ that morning) and motioned for Ron to set up the game.

"Just one," I warned him. "Then it's back to your homework."

"Yes Mum," Ron said sarcastically.

I rolled my eyes and decided not to respond to his comment.

"Wager?" I asked. Though Ron and Harry usually played for fun, Ron and I always had to set a bet.

"If I win, you write my charms essay," Ron declared.

"No," I shook my head. "No more wagering schoolwork." We'd done that last year, and Ron had ended up lagging behind the rest of the class for not having done the work himself. Doing Ron's essay for him would only hurt him in the long run.

"Fine," Ron muttered. "Then… If I win, you trade wands with me."

"That would never work," I pointed out. "The wand chooses the wizard, remember? If I gave you my wand, it would probably work even less than your broken one. You'll just have to get a new one of your own."

Ron sighed. "Then I don't know," he insisted. "What do you want?"

I pondered that for a moment. "Alright," I declared. "If I win, you have to carry my books for the next week."

"Fine," Ron agreed. "But only the ones we need that day. I'll not be carrying around your entire library just because you like to have options for your lunchtime reading."

"Agreed," I agreed. "And if you win, I'll carry your books."

"I don't need a girl to carry my books for me," Ron insisted, sitting up straight as he tried to look more manly. I had to force myself not to laugh. "If I win, then you'll come with me to watch Harry's Quidditch practice on Tuesday night."

"It's a deal," I said, reaching out to shake Ron's hand.

As usual, I played white, so it was my move first. Though I'd read up about chess strategies over the summer, it seemed that I was still no match for Ron. Within about ten minutes, he'd completely pulverized my men and conquered my king.

"Again," I said in frustration.

"I thought you said we could only play one game?" Ron asked innocently. "Or are you taking that back?"

Making a fist, I let my irritation pass before answering.

"No, you're right, you write your charms essay," I said.

"Well I don't mind putting it off if you really want to play again," Ron insisted. "In fact, I'd be more than happy to put it off all day."

"No, no," I shook my head. Ron's education came first. It was just frustrating that it took him so long to get it done. "I'll just go back to my reading until you're done."

The rest of the afternoon and evening progressed in much the same fashion as always. Harry and Ron got their work done, and then Ron and I had another game of chess. After getting roped into going, not only to Harry's Tuesday night Quidditch practice with Ron, but also his Thursday night and Saturday afternoon practices, I gave up trying to win and let Harry have a go.

Sitting back and watching the boys play, I couldn't help but smile and close my eyes a little bit as I leaned back and just enjoyed being in the common room. It was great being back. I'd missed this. And I wouldn't trade it for the world.


	25. Scared

Chapter 25: Scared

"Today, we will be brewing the Beautification Potion," Professor Snape announced as we settled into class. We were now well into the middle of October and classes had been steadily moving away from the simplicity of first year magic towards more complicated second year magic.

Upon hearing which potion we would be making, Ron made a remark to Harry, but I didn't hear as he was sitting on Harry's other side.

"As you all should remember, last year, we brewed the Anti-Aging Potion. Does anybody remember what that potion does?" Professor Snape asked. I raised my hand immediately, and only after Professor Snape had looked at everyone else did he finally concede and allow me to answer.

"The Anti-Aging Potion stops the visual aging process in older witches and wizards and gives the illusion that they are still young. The potion does not change the individual's age, nor does it slow down or stop the individual from undergoing the inner aging process. However, it will prevent the individual's outer appearance from changing and deteriorating due to age. For example, hair does not appear to change to white or grey and wrinkles do not become visible," I replied, reciting the description given in _Magical Drafts and Potions_.

"Thank you, Ms. Granger," Professor Snape said. "Next time, try to be creative enough to use your own words." Last year, this would have been cause for complete and utter mortification. I had grown used to it by now though, and though my face did heat up, I didn't take what he said to heart.

"Ms. Granger is, however, correct," Professor Snape said, and I could see that he didn't particularly like that he had to say that. "The Anti-Aging Potion gives people, as Arsenius Jigger puts it, _the illusion that they are still young_. It does not actually change the individual's appearance. It causes the individual and those around them to see something that is not really there. It creates an _illusion_."

"The Beautification Potion, however, is much more complex than this. This potion actually causes the body to change. The individual's appearance is altered. Not only do people appear more attractive, their features actually change to make them more attractive," Professor Snape continued.

"There are a number of potions of this sort, referred to as appearance altering potions. The Beautification Potion is the simplest, and therefore we will be beginning with that. It is imperative that you all successfully brew the Beautification Potion in order to be able to continue with the more complicated potions we will be brewing this year. In addition, the basics of the Beautification Potion will carry into all appearance altering potions you ever make. Even the most complicated appearance altering potion will require the basic methods learned today," Professor Snape said.

"Sir, what is the most complicated appearance altering potion?" I heard Malfoy ask from the front of the room.

"That, Mr. Malfoy, would be the Polyjuice Potion, which when brewed correctly, can change an individual's entire appearance and transform them into another person. However, this potion is not on the curriculum for second years, and therefore there is no reason to learn about it," Professor Snape answered.

He then had us begin to brew the Beautification Potion. Malfoy was sitting right in front of Professor Snape's desk, and when I went up to get an empty flask for my potion, I heard him questioning Professor Snape further on the Polyjuice Potion.

"Mr. Malfoy, the Polyjuice Potion is highly dangerous. It can only be found in a book called _Moste Potente Potions_, which can only be found in the restricted section of the library. If you ever did brew it, it would be in a seventh year N.E.W.T class, certainly not in the first term of second year," Professor Snape was saying as I passed by the table.

By the time I returned to my cauldron, I had to completely focus on brewing my Beautification Potion and when we finally left class, I had pushed all thought of the Polyjuice Potion to the back of my mind.

That weekend, Ron and I were sitting in the common room, working on an essay for Professor Snape about the basic theory of appearance altering potions while Harry was at Quidditch practice. Ron was getting frustrated because every time he wrote a paragraph, I read it over and informed him that it was wrong. I was only trying to help him. I probably would have been gentler about it if he had bothered to open his potions book to find the answers, but as it was, he was just being lazy.

When I was finished, I let Ron read my essay and told him he could not copy it, but that he could use my ideas. While Ron began to properly write his essay, I flipped through the textbook to read up about the next potion we would be brewing – the Aging Potion, which contrary to the Anti-Aging Potion, actually does make the person who drinks it physically age.

"Chess?" Ron asked after a little while, surprising me and causing me to look up.

"Finished already?" I frowned.

Ron nodded, and I grabbed his essay and pulled it towards me to read through. It actually wasn't half bad. More of it than I'd like had been obviously taken from my essay, but it was worded differently enough that it looked like we'd just discussed the topic together and not like I'd given him my essay to cheat off of. It was definitely an improvement over what he'd been producing earlier.

I told him so, and Ron smirked proudly.

"Not as dumb as you thought I was," he declared.

"I never said you were dumb," I replied. "Just unmotivated."

We didn't get the chance to play chess though, because at that moment, Harry returned from his quidditch practice, covered in mud, and going on about something about Filch and Sir Nicholas and a Deathday Party on Halloween. It sounded really interesting. I'd never been to a Deathday Party. In fact, I hadn't know that was even a thing that ghosts did until now. It was sure to be an educational experience.

"You're really not coming to the feast?" Sally-Anne asked as she and Lily were heading down to the Great Hall on Halloween.

I shook my head. "I told you, I've been invited to a party."

"Yeah, we heard," Lily said judgementally. "Nearly Headless Nick's Deathday Party."

"It's _Sir Nicholas_," I corrected Lily. Not that I never called him Nearly Headless Nick, but I didn't appreciate her disdain for my plans for the evening. "And you're more than welcome to come."

"Not a chance," Sally-Anne sniffed. "We'll be at the feast, with the _real _people."

"Ghosts are people too," I cried, not liking her connotation. "Or at least, they were real people."

"Whatever," Lily said, flipping her hair. "Do what you want, Hermione. It's not like we care. If you'd rather spend your time in the dungeons with a bunch of dead people, that's your prerogative."

I didn't bother arguing with the girls any further. I knew from experience that we would never come to an agreement, and the argument would only keep on going forever. And I would rather join Harry and Ron at the Deathday Party than spend the entire evening arguing with my dormmates.

Unfortunately, I found myself rather disappointed an hour later, when I realized that Lily and Sally-Anne had been right. Going to the feast would have been a much better decision. As interesting as it was to be in attendance at a Deathday Party, there was no edible food, the music was almost painful to listen to, it was freezing cold, and the conversation was mediocre at best.

Once I felt we had stayed at the party long enough to be polite, we left, heading back up to the Great Hall in the hopes that there would still be some food left. I was starving, and I could only imagine the state Ron's stomach was in, given the amount of food he was accustomed to.

When we were almost at the Great Hall, Harry suddenly began acting very strange. He pressed himself up against the wall, and then started running in the opposite direction that we'd been going.

Ron and I called out to him, telling him to stop and asking what he was doing, but everything he said was confused and didn't make any sense. We followed him, wondering whether he'd gone mad from hunger or something, and then I saw something that had me freezing on the spot.

There, on the wall, were words, written in what I hoped was red paint simply meant to look like blood. _The Chamber of Secrets has been opened. Enemies of the heir, beware._

The words seemed familiar, and yet, I couldn't remember where I had heard about the Chamber of Secrets before. I felt like it was Nicholas Flamel all over again. Something about it seemed off though. Last year, with the search for Nicolas Flamel, I'd felt a sense of unquenchable curiosity. This mystery felt more sinister, more threatening. It probably had something to do with the threatening message on the wall.

Just when I thought things couldn't get more bizarre, Ron pointed to something just under where the words were written. It was Mrs. Norris, Flich's cat, and she was hanging from the torch bracket by her tail, unmoving. I would have said she was dead, but there was something eerily unsettling about how stiff she was.

I didn't like it. I didn't like it one bit. Whatever this was, it was way bigger than the three of us. We needed to get an adult – a teacher. We needed to get Professor McGonagall, or Professor Dumbledore.

I made to move away, but I froze yet again when I turned and saw that the entire school had just been let out of the feast. They were closing in from both sides of the corridor, and Harry, Ron and I were standing there, appearing very much as though we were guilty.

When the students caught sight of the wall behind us, all the talking came to an end. It became so quiet; you probably could have heard a pin drop. Then, from the silence, there came a voice.

"Enemies of the Heir, beware! You'll be next mudbloods!" the voice said. I recognized it as Malfoy's voice, and then there he was, standing right at the front of the crowd, staring right at me and grinning.

I felt something inside me clench. The writing on the wall was a threat to the whole school, but Malfoy was looking right at me. Somehow, by the look on his face, I knew that his threat wasn't for all the muggle-borns of the school. His threat was for me, and for me alone.

Normally, I wouldn't be afraid of Malfoy. Malfoy was just an insecure child who needed to threaten and insult and make fun of others to make himself feel superior. But today, with Mrs. Norris seemingly dead, and with the ominous words written on the wall above, Malfoy's threat wasn't so insignificant. I was scared.


	26. Making a Plan

Chapter 26: Making a Plan

The Professors arrived on the scene moments later, and Harry, Ron, and I were immediately escorted to Professor Lockhart's office to discuss things with Professor Dumbledore without the entire school watching.

It wasn't good.

At least Professor Dumbledore thought we were innocent. And Mrs. Norris was only petrified, not dead. She could be cured.

But now the entire school thought we were guilty. And there was something awfully strange about how Harry had been able to find the scene so quickly, following an imaginary voice.

Somehow, these two things had to be connected. Harry heard a voice and somehow it had lead us to the corridor where the attack had taken place. I knew I had heard about the Chamber of Secrets somewhere, but I couldn't remember where. I realized that it was probably in _Hogwarts: A History_. I tried to remember something about it, but I couldn't.

When we got back to the dormitories, I immediately checked my trunk, but my worry was only confirmed. I had had to buy so many new books for this year that not all my books had fit into my trunk and I had been forced to leave some behind. My copy of _Hogwarts: A History_ was sitting uselessly in my room at home.

The next day, at break, I went straight to the library. I didn't even bother trying to locate the book in the hundreds of shelves that made up the library. I went straight to Madam Pince and asked to take out one of the library's copies of the book, but she informed me that they had all been checked out the night before – while Harry, Ron and I were stuck in Lockhart's office – and that there was a two week waiting list.

I began searching through tons of other library books in the hopes that I could find some reference to the Chamber of Secrets, at least to jog my memory, as I knew I had read about it before, but none of the other books in the library were helpful. Nevertheless, I started spent all my free time reading in the library, much to Harry and Ron's annoyance.

On Wednesday, we had History of Magic. Professor Binns was giving a lecture about the International Warlock Convention of 1289, and for the first time, I found that I was unable to pay attention and take good notes. I tried my best to focus on the lecture, but I found that my mind kept wandering off to wondering about the legend of the Chamber of Secrets.

Finally, I couldn't take it anymore. I decided that if any teacher was going to be willing to tell us the legend, it would be Professor Binns. Since he's a ghost, and he doesn't really interact with the rest of the faculty, or really any of the living world outside of the classroom, it was likely that he didn't even know about the message on the wall or Filch's cat, and he would probably be open to telling the story.

I raised my hand and waited for Professor Binns to notice me. As the other students began to notice my hand was up, they began staring at me quite openly. Nobody ever raised their hand in History of Magic, and I felt like I was putting on quite a show. Finally, Professor Binns looked up randomly and saw my hand.

When I posed my question, a number of students jumped, suddenly awake and at attention. Neville almost fell to the ground. If Professor Binns consented, it would be his most popular lecture of the year.

He declined, insisting that the Chamber of Secrets wasn't history, but myth. But, being the stubborn person that I am, I refused to let him off so easily. I shot my hand right back up into the air and argued until he conceded to tell us the story.

Much of it was familiar to me. I could recall that I'd definitely read about it before, but the details were still fuzzy. It was a story that I remembered glossing over the first time reading about it because it seemed too fantastical. I hadn't imagined that a secret monster could be lurking in the school without the teachers having found it by now. But in the light of recent events, I wasn't so sure.

That night in the common room, all any of us could think about was the chamber of secrets. Ron was trying to do his Charms homework, but he was so distracted that he ended up setting his essay on fire.

Harry and Ron seemed convinced that Malfoy was behind everything. I was less convinced, seeing as how he was only a second-year student, and that their suspicions were biased due to their hatred of him. It wasn't that I didn't think he would be a likely culprit, just that he was awfully young when there were so many other possible culprits.

There was however, once foolproof way to find out whether it was Malfoy or not. It was something that had been sitting in the back of my mind since Professor Snape's lecture on beautification potions. If we brewed a Polyjuice potion and impersonated Malfoy's friends, we might be able to get a confession out of him. And if it wasn't Malfoy, maybe we could learn something else useful anyway in their common room: a clue or something to lead us to the right person.

Getting the book with the recipe for the potion was easy enough. All had to do was charm Professor Lockhart into signing a permission slip for us, so I laid the compliments on thick.

As soon as we had it, we headed straight for the library. Madam Pince was a little suspicious, but with the signed slip, there wasn't much for her to say, and from there we took the book straight to the girl's bathroom on the second floor.

Since this was Moaning Myrtle's bathroom, it was generally empty as students tended to avoid it. I had decided that this would make it the ideal location to brew the potion; as we wouldn't be found out, and surely Myrtle wouldn't tell.

When we got there, I pulled _Moste Potente Potions_ out of my bag and opened it to the page for the Polyjuice Potion. I began to read the directions and discovered that it was going to be far more difficult than the Beautification Potion. I began to read the list of ingredients, hoping we would be able to find them all, and I found I was muttering to myself. The first few ingredients seemed like they would be easy enough to get. But there were other ingredients that I had no idea where to get. Powdered horn of a Bicorn and shredded skin on a Boomslang were not very commonly found ingredients. My eyes fell to the last ingredient, and I must have said it out loud, because Ron freaked out.

I studied the recipe a little while longer and began to make a plan. I would have to do most of the brewing myself, as Harry and Ron were horrible at potions. This was not a potion to get wrong.

I returned to the second-floor bathroom early the next morning with my cauldron and some supplies. The sooner we got started on this, the better. I didn't bother Harry or Ron, as Harry had a Quidditch game that day and needed his rest. And besides, they wouldn't have been a load of help anyway.

"What's that you're doing?" Myrtle asked curiously as I began to get myself set up. "Brewing that secret illegal potion, you were talking about yesterday?"

"That's none of your business, Myrtle," I insisted as I measured out the correct amount of water for the base of my potion and poured it into my cauldron.

"What goes on in my bathroom is most certainly my business," Myrtle insisted. "Or do you want me to go upstairs and let Professor McGonagall know what you're up to in here?"

I sighed. The benefit of doing this in Myrtle's bathroom was of course that nobody ever used these bathrooms and we'd never be found out. The downside was that Myrtle knew exactly what we were doing.

"Listen Myrtle," I said slowly. "This potion is really important. Not just to me, but to the whole school if we accomplish what we're trying to do. And I would really appreciate your discretion in this matter."

"I don't know," Myrtle said, pretending to think about it. "It could be really annoying having you in here every day doing – whatever it is you're going to be doing. And what if the potion smells funny? I don't want to be smelling some foul concoction all day long."

"You can't smell anymore, Myrtle," I reminded her. In death, she'd lost three of her five senses: touch, taste, and smell. All that was left was sight and sound. "And won't it be nice to have visitors? It must get awfully lonely in here all alone every day."

"Visitors?" Myrtle perked up at that. "So it won't be just you?"

I tried not to be offended that Myrtle disliked my company. I disliked hers, after all.

"Well, I'm sure Harry and Ron will be in here quite a bit too," I informed her. Though I planned to do the actual brewing myself, I expected them to help out regardless.

If it weren't for the fact that she was no longer physically capable of the action, I would have said that Myrtle blushed at that.

"Oh, well alright then," she agreed. "I guess that's alright."

"You won't mind having boys coming in here?" I asked, just to make sure.

"Oh no," Myrtle practically giggled. "Tell them they can visit me anytime they want."

I nodded, and as Myrtle retreated to her cubicle, I got started on the potion, chopping and measuring the initial ingredients and adding them to the water.

It took close to an hour to get the base finished and simmering. I lit a very low fire under the cauldron and left it sitting there, confident that the fire was controlled, and then headed down to the Quidditch pitch to watch Harry's game.


	27. Poor Ginny

Chapter 27: Poor Ginny

The next morning, Ron and I were heading to the great hall to get some breakfast before going to see Harry in the hospital wing – he'd been badly injured when a bludger had decided to target him for the entire game – but we paused as we passed the staff room.

"… another attack Filius," Professor McGonagall was saying. I knew immediately that the attack they were talking about was the same one that happened to Mrs. Norris.

"A student?" Professor Flitwick was asking. I turned my head around to look at Ron and his face was filled with horror.

"I'm afraid so. A first year, Colin Creevey," McGonagall replied. Upon hearing the name, I felt a shock run through my whole body. Only yesterday Colin had been irritating Harry with his camera and now today he was Petrified.

As Professors McGonagall and Flitwick continued talking about the attack, I motioned for Ron to follow me and we began walking down the corridor. I decided that we would have to skip breakfast and visiting Harry in favor of working on the Polyjuice Potion. Hopefully the sooner we interrogated Malfoy, the sooner we could put an end to the attacks.

"Hermione, this isn't the way to the Great Hall," Ron said tentatively from behind me.

"Ron, were you listening to Professor McGonagall in that room?" I asked, wheeling around.

"Y-yes," he stammered, unnerved by my sudden questioning.

"How are we going to find out if Malfoy is the attacker if we sit around eating all day rather than working on that potion?" I asked, turning back around and continuing down the corridor, leaving Ron standing behind.

After a few seconds, I heard footsteps, and then a couple gasps for breath behind me. "Yeah, alright, good idea," Ron said. "So where're we going?"

"To get supplies," I replied, probably not very helpfully. I lead him down to the student store cupboard and got the ingredients we would need for the next steps. I knew we needed to start stewing the lacewings right away, and we would need to add knotgrass periodically now that the base was finished.

When we had everything we would need, we headed back up to the second floor girl's bathroom and I opened the book to begin. We moved the potion into a cubicle after Ron conveniently pointed out that just because students rarely used this bathroom didn't mean they wouldn't.

I handed Ron the fluxweed and asked him to measure out the correct amount. I took the leeches and began preparing them. When Ron had measured it, I flattened myself against the wall of the cubicle to allow Ron to reach the cauldron to add the fluxweed.

As he was leaning over, the bathroom door creaked open and a voice announced, "It's me."

In his panic, Ron jerked, banging his head on the opposite wall and flinging his arm into the cauldron of water, causing a large splash and a fair amount of water landing on the floor. Instinctively, I gasped, and then clapped a hand over my mouth, as it could be anyone outside the stall, though I had a hunch it was Harry.

Just to be sure, I leaned down and peered through the keyhole in the door and saw Harry standing right in front of me. Relief spread through me. We welcomed him into the cubicle with us – it was becoming extremely crowded now – and Harry revealed that a house elf named Dobby had visited him the night before and he'd learned quite a bit of information.

As the days wore on, I continued to work diligently on the Polyjuice Potion. Harry and Ron participated as well, but I didn't trust them with the finer points of the brewing. This was a complicated potion for an experienced potioneer, let alone a couple of second years that barely paid attention in potions class. No, it was best that I take ownership of the potion. We couldn't afford any mishaps.

Despite all that was going on, I was optimistic. The potion was coming along well, and soon, we'd be able to get some answers. Hopefully once we had them, we could put a stop to all the fear and uncertainty gripping the school.

A couple of days after Colin's attack, I was sitting in the common room working on some transfiguration homework.

"Hermione?" It was Ginny. And she looked terrible.

"Ginny!" I gasped in surprise. I hadn't seen much of the girl recently, and honestly had forgotten about her a little bit. "What's wrong?"

I could see Ginny trying to come up with an answer, but instead she broke down into tears.

"Oh Ginny!" I cried, jumping up and wrapping my arms around the poor girl.

I suddenly realized that in all the excitement of the Polyjuice potion and trying to solve the mystery of the Chamber of Secrets, I hadn't even stopped to think about how this newest attack would be affecting the first years. Colin was a first year – in fact, I'd counselled Ginny not long ago to try to befriend him – and now he was lying stiffly in the hospital wing, unable to move.

I led Ginny over to an empty couch nearby and sat her down on it, keeping my arms around her. She was clinging to me like a leech and I was afraid to let her go.

"I'm sorry," I heard her mutter amidst her sobs.

"Don't apologize," I insisted. "Of course you're upset. He was your friend."

"Right," Ginny nodded, pulling away and wiping the tears from her eyes. "Hermione, I need to tell you something."

"Go ahead," I urged her. If there was anything I could do to help the miserable girl, I would. Not just because she was Ron's sister – although that was a large part of it – but also because I hated to see people in such pain.

"I don't really know how to say it," Ginny continued hesitantly. "I can't – I can't remember – "

"What can't you remember?" I frowned.

"I don't know!" Ginny cried, throwing her hands up in the air. "I can't remember anything. From that night. Where I was, what I was doing – "

"You mean from the night Colin was attacked?" I asked gently.

I couldn't help but feel a little guilty for the turmoil Ginny was experiencing. It was my advice that had led her to befriend Colin, and it was clear now that she'd grown close to him since our last conversation. And now in her grief, she was trying to make sense of something that couldn't be made sense of. She needed answers, but I had no answers to give. Not until the Polyjuice potion was ready at least.

Ginny nodded in response to my question, and I placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"Ginny I'm sorry you're upset," I said. "But it's not your fault that this happened to him. The attack happened late at night; you were probably in bed. You couldn't have known he would be out past curfew, and you couldn't have protected him if you'd been there."

"But that's not – "

"And he's going to be okay, you know," I added, cutting her off. "He'd not dead, just petrified. Once they prepare the restorative draught, he'll be right back to normal."

"You don't understand!" Ginny cried. "You don't understand anything."

She turned away from me and I felt wretched. But maybe she was right. Maybe I couldn't understand what she was going through because I didn't really know her all that well. Maybe she needed to talk to someone who knew her better than I did.

"Do you want me to go and find Ron?" I asked. "Or Fred, or George, or Percy? Maybe you could talk to one of them?"

"No, I can't – never mind," Ginny insisted, clamming up. "Forget I said anything, okay Hermione?"

Feeling at a loss, I tried to follow Ginny as she headed towards the staircase that led to the girls' dormitories, but she stopped me.

"Seriously Hermione," she warned. "I don't want to talk about it anymore."

"Alright," I said, backing off. "But if you ever do want to talk – "

I didn't bother finishing my sentence because she was already gone.

A couple of weeks later, I knew we were going to need the Boomslang skin and the Bicorn horn soon if we were going to make the potion properly. I also knew that the only place in the whole school that I had a chance of finding the ingredients would be in Professor Snape's private store cupboard.

As our next potions lesson came closer, I knew we would need to get the ingredients then, as another week would probably ruin the potion. Harry and Ron weren't coming up with any ideas, so I made a plan.

When Thursday's potions class arrived, I was feeling extremely nervous. Stealing was a pretty huge deal and I couldn't even imagine what would happen if I got caught. It took all of my concentration to focus on brewing my Swelling Solution and I almost added fluxweed instead of the dried nettles I was supposed to be adding because my mind was on the Polyjuice Potion that was simmering in the bathroom.

Harry was supposed to wait for my signal for the diversion, but Snape had spent most of the class watching him. When he finally turned his back to walk towards the front of the room, I glanced over at Harry and nodded, and then proceeded to the student store cupboard in the back, pretending to be getting some more bat spleens.

I waited at the cupboard and then there was an explosion. This was my cue, so I checked to make sure Snape was looking elsewhere and I slipped out the door. Once I was out the door, I ran down the corridor to Snape's office and burst into his store cupboard. It was exhilarating. My heart was pounding and I could hear the blood rushing in my ears. If Professor Snape caught me – well I couldn't take the time to think about that scary possibility.

I searched frantically until I found what I needed and took it. I made sure to put everything back the way it was and then I shut the door behind me and ran back to the classroom, hoping I hadn't taken too long.

When I reached the door to the classroom, I hid the ingredients under my robes and peeked in. Snape was administering a Deflating Draft to Malfoy, so I slipped back into the room and inconspicuously made my way back to my station and slipped the stolen ingredients into my bag, relieved that I'd made it.

Snape was furious when he found the remnants of the firework Harry had thrown in Goyle's cauldron. Thankfully, the bell rang ten minutes later and he never found out for certain who threw it.

After class, we ran to the bathroom and I went straight to the potion and added the new ingredients. As I started stirring, I consulted the directions and decided that it would be ready in two weeks, just in time for Christmas. It was time to start devising a new plan.


	28. Rumors

Chapter 28: Rumors

"How much longer do you have to stir that for?" Ron demanded.

It was Saturday and Harry had Quidditch practice, so I'd dragged Ron with me to the girl's bathroom to work some more on the Polyjuice potion.

"Just another fifteen minutes," I assured him, checking my watch. It was important now that the boomslang skin had been added that I stir for exactly an hour. If I stirred too little, the potion might not transform us completely into the person we were trying to impersonate. If I stirred too much, the potion might not transform us completely back into ourselves at the end. "I know I don't want to be half me and half Slytherin forever, do you?"

Ron grumbled, but agreed.

"Why did you need me for this part anyway?" he asked, crossing his arms. "Seems all I've done is watch you stir for close to an hour. I could've been watching Harry's practice."

"You always watch Harry practice," I pointed out. "Besides, it's good to have a lookout. Between you and me, Myrtle's not all that vigilant."

Mercifully, when we'd arrived in the bathroom this morning, Myrtle had been off elsewhere, so we didn't have to deal with her and her moaning. Sometimes when I'd come down to brew without Harry or Ron, I'd get her to keep watch and make sure nobody found me brewing the potion in the first cubicle, but Myrtle was always more interested in annoying me than watching the door.

"And you're sure it'll be ready for Christmas?" Ron asked.

I nodded. "Not a moment sooner, mind you, but yes. It'll be ready."

"Good," Ron muttered. "The sooner we get the truth out of Malfoy, the sooner we can put this all behind us."

"I couldn't agree more," I replied.

With all this focus on brewing the Polyjuice potion, I hadn't had as much time to focus on my schoolwork as I'd have liked. Sure, my assignments were still excellent, but I knew I could do better if I had more time to devote to them. I hoped that by the time the second term arrived, I would be able to refocus my energies on my classes, especially since we'd be moving closer to exams.

I finished stirring and pulled the stirring rod from the cauldron. I adjusted the temperature to a low simmer and then packed up my things.

"Alright, I'm done for now," I declared, much to Ron's delight. "I'll have to check on it again this evening, to make sure the potion hasn't started to congeal, but I think it should be good for the rest of the day."

"Excellent," Ron said, leading the way to the door. "Now can we do something fun?"

"Well we do have that essay for Professor McGonagall," I recalled. "Why don't we head to the library and get started on that?"

I could practically feel the frustration pouring off Ron as he turned to face me with an exasperated look. I couldn't help but laugh.

"I'm just kidding," I assured him. "Well, I'm not. We will have to do that essay later this afternoon. But we don't have to do it now. Why don't we have a game of chess while we wait for Harry to come back from practice?"

Ron's frown immediately turned to a grin, and I couldn't help but find it funny how quickly he could change his tune.

"Now that sounds more like it," he said, picking up the pace. "Prepare to be slaughtered."

Though I rolled my eyes, I knew Ron was right. Despite the research I'd done over the summer and all the practicing I'd been doing; I still wasn't even close to beating Ron. I was determined to get there one day though, and so I continued to torture myself by losing to him over and over again.

The rest of the day passed uneventfully, and after checking on the potion once more before curfew – it hadn't congealed, but instead had turned exactly the shade of navy blue that I'd wanted – I headed up to bed.

When I arrived in the dormitory, it was to find all four of my dormmates huddled on Sally-Anne's bed, speculating as to who was behind the attacks on Mrs. Norris and now on Colin.

"It has to be an older student. Sixth or seventh year for sure," Lily was saying. "Whatever kind of magic they're using has to be highly advanced."

"Unless it isn't a student at all," Parvati pointed out. "What if it's a teacher?"

"No way is it a teacher," Sally-Anne shook her head.

"What makes you so sure?" Lavender demanded. "We don't know."

"The teachers are hired by Dumbledore," Sally-Anne insisted. "He wouldn't hire someone evil."

"I'm not saying he did it on purpose!" Parvati defended herself. "But, I mean, have you ever wondered what they do in their spare time? We never even see Professor Sinistra except for in class."

"That's because she teaches astronomy and she sleeps all day," Lily insisted. "Not because she's hiding anything."

"Or maybe that's what she wants you to think," Lavender said mysteriously.

As I headed over to my bedside table to get my bathroom kit and my pyjamas, the girls noticed me, and twisted around so that they were all facing me.

"What do you think, Hermione?" Lily asked.

"Hmm?" I frowned. Though I had been paying attention, I preferred to make it seem like I hadn't been. I didn't want my dormmates to think that I found them or their conversation interesting.

"Who do you think is behind the attacks?" Lily clarified.

I shrugged. "Well it's probably someone from Slytherin," I pointed out unhelpfully. The message in blood had referred to the _Heir of Slytherin_ after all, so I figured that much was obvious. I didn't want to go spreading gossip about my true suspicions until I had proof. Especially not to these four gossip-hungry girls. "Apart from that, I don't know," I shrugged.

"See?" Sally-Anne said, turning back to face the other girls. "Even Hermione thinks it's a student."

"That's not what she said," Parvati insisted. "She just said it was someone from Slytherin. It could be a teacher who had been in Slytherin when they went to school here."

"Anyone know what house Professor Sinistra was in when she was a student?" Lavender wondered aloud.

There was a pregnant pause in the conversation as the four girls pondered that.

"She could have been in Slytherin," Parvati said slowly.

Lily shook her head. "I'm pretty sure she was in Ravenclaw."

"You're just saying that because you don't want the _Heir of Slytherin_ to be a teacher," Lavender insisted.

"No, I'm saying it because I think I remember her mentioning it in class once," Lily retorted.

I chose this moment to slip out of the bedroom and across the landing to the bathroom.

Whoever the Heir of Slytherin was, I was pretty sure it wasn't Professor Sinistra. I was immensely glad that Harry and Ron hadn't overheard the conversation between my dormmates, because they'd be likely to start accusing Professor Snape.

No, I was pretty confident the culprit was a student. Like Sally-Anne had said, Dumbledore knew his teachers well enough not to have hired someone who would open the Chamber of Secrets. Hopefully soon enough I would have answers. Until then, I just needed to focus on the Polyjuice potion and ignore the various rumour mills that were surely circulating the school.

Later that week, a notice went up about a new duelling club that was being started up. Excited and intrigued, Harry, Ron, and I all signed up to join. In preparation, I checked out a book from the library entitled _The Art of Duelling_ and read up as much as I could about the topic in the short period of time that I had.

Unfortunately, the duelling club did not live up to my expectations. In fact, the whole thing turned out to be a huge mistake, and when it was over, I wished we'd never gone. Not only had it been a huge waste of time – I learned more from the textbook I'd borrowed from the library – but it had also ended in disaster.

Harry had revealed that he was a Parselmouth. In front of the entire school.

After my shock wore off, I immediately knew that there was no way Harry was the _Heir of Slytherin_. His house loyalties aside, he didn't have a malicious bone in his body. All Harry ever wanted to do was to protect people. There was no way he was going around the school petrifying people.

But the rest of the school didn't know Harry as well as I did.

"Did you hear about Harry Potter?" Lily Moon all but whispered.

Once again, my four dormmates were clustered together, this time on Lavender's bed, gossiping about the events of the day. Unbeknownst to them, I was already in bed, the curtains of my four-poster drawn shut.

"Hear? We were _there_," Parvati replied.

"Was it terrifying?" Sally-Anne asked.

"It was so scary," Lavender insisted. "Nobody knew what he was saying. He couldn't take his eyes off it. It was like he was controlling it."

"And Professor Snape had to vanish it?" Lily asked.

"That's right," Parvati agreed. "If he hadn't stepped in when he did… well I'm afraid to even think what could have happened."

"How did he even get into Gryffindor if he's a Parselmouth?" Sally-Anne wondered. "Don't they all go directly into Slytherin?"

"Obviously it was a mistake," Lavender replied. "The hat was probably confused, because usually all Potters go to Gryffindor."

"But this wouldn't have been the first case of a family being split between different houses," Lily insisted.

"Maybe the hat's just getting old," Parvati declared. "Either way, it's obvious he's the heir of Slytherin."

"I just hope Professor Dumbledore does something about this before he has the chance to strike again," Lily insisted.

"Well now that he'd been ousted, he won't be able to sneak around anymore," Sally-Anne said. "That's got to be why he's been getting away with it. Because nobody would ever suspect _Harry Potter_ of being up to no good."

"Do you think his friends are in on it too?" Parvati wondered. I could feel the four sets of eyes looking in the direction of my bed.

"I bet all three of them are down in the common room now, trying to figure out a way to cover it all up," Lavender said.

"I always knew there was something off about her," Sally-Anne muttered. "I guess now we know."

Having had quite enough of listening to the four of them, I grabbed my wand and whispered a silencing spell, to block out the sound of their chatter. I could only imagine that the same conversations were going on in all the dorms across Hogwarts.

I suddenly wished the Polyjuice potion was closer to being ready. Once we exposed Malfoy, people would stop looking at us – particularly Harry – as villains. Christmas couldn't come soon enough.


	29. Christmas

Chapter 29: Christmas

I didn't feel bad that I wasn't going home for Christmas. I was sad of course. I would miss my parents, and it would certainly be strange not being with them on Christmas morning. It wasn't that I didn't want to go home for Christmas. But I knew what we were doing was more important than going home for Christmas.

I didn't tell my parents the real reason why I was staying at Hogwarts, of course. Telling them the truth would only make them worry, not to mention ruin all the progress I'd made with them over the summer. And we were finally in a good place.

In the end, I told them that second years got a lot more work than first years and that my workload would be too great for me to come home. I knew they would understand and respect my decision, as studies always came first.

The third attack came right before the end of term. I had just stepped out of the common room to run down to the library for a moment, and when I returned, Gryffindor Tower was in chaos. Everyone was yelling and screaming over everyone else and Harry and Ron were nowhere to be seen. I spotted Neville sitting at a table off to the side, so I went over to where he was sitting and asked what was going on.

"There's b-been another attack," he said nervously. "It w-was Justin. He's b-been Petrified. And Nearly Headless N-nick was there to. Apparently he's P-petrified as well. I d-d-didn't k-know that ghosts could be Petrified." Neville seemed almost petrified with fright. He told me that he was afraid he would be next even though he was a pureblood. Though the news of the attack was extremely disturbing, I tried to appear calm for Neville's sake.

"Neville, calm down," I said. "You're not a squib and you're not Muggle-born, so you're safe. You don't have anything to worry about. You're not even half-blood, you're a pureblood. There's no way you'll be attacked."

"B-but I'm almost a s-squib," Neville stuttered. It was common knowledge that Neville wasn't very good at magic, but that didn't make him a squib.

"Neville, are you a student here?" I asked.

"Yes," he replied.

"And does Hogwarts accept anybody non-magical to come to school here?" I asked.

"No," he replied.

"Then clearly, you are not a squib," I said matter of factly.

"Well when you say it like that…" Neville said slowly. I knew within the hour he would be back to doubting himself, and it wouldn't be much use to sit around here all day trying to convince him he was safe, so I excused myself. I needed to find Ron and Harry.

If the rumors had been bad before the attack on Justin, they only got worse after the fact. Justin had been the object of attention of the snake Malfoy had conjured up in the duelling club, which only seemed to cement in people's minds that Harry was the heir of Slytherin.

It came to the point where none of us, most of all Harry, could walk through the corridors without being stared at, pointed at, or whispered about. When the holidays finally arrived and most of the school packed up and went home for the holiday, it was a relief. At least we would have some peace and quiet for once.

To my delight, all four of my dormmates had chosen to go home for Christmas, which meant that I had the entire dormitory to myself. In fact, apart from the rest of the Weasleys, who had elected to remain at the castle with Ron, none of the other Gryffindors had remained at school for the holiday, leaving us with the run of the entire tower.

I awoke early on Christmas morning. I was anxious about the Polyjuice potion, and restless as well. Even though it was six in the morning, I decided to get up and go check on the potion, to make sure everything was as it should be.

Ignoring the presents at the end of my bed, I headed down to the empty common room and headed into the castle and down to the second-floor bathroom. When I got there, I found that the potion had thickened just like it was supposed to, and I became very excited. I consulted the recipe and confirmed that all that was left was to add lacewings until it turned the colour of mud, as it was currently an icky yellow color.

Eager to finish the potion, I began adding the lacewings slowly, stirring clockwise as I did so. I watched as the potion became darker and darker, until finally, it was a deep, dark, murky brown. I checked and re-checked the directions to ensure that I had made it right, and when I was positive that I had done everything properly, I took it off the toilet and got rid of the flames.

Moving into the next cubicle, I quickly checked on the Sleeping Draught I had begun to brew yesterday. It had to sit overnight, but it seemed ready. It was a much easier potion to brew, and I wasn't particularly worried about messing that one up. I just needed to ensure that it had thinned out like I wanted it to, which it had.

I hadn't mentioned this part of the plan to Harry and Ron yet, but we would need to give it to Crabbe and Goyle while we looked like them, as it would be strange for there to be two Crabbes and Goyles in the Slytherin common room at the same time. I had brought two small cakes with me, so I took them, and with a syringe, injected them with the Sleeping Potion. When I was done cleaning up, I took one last look at the Polyjuice potion. Satisfied, I locked the stall door as I left the bathroom and headed back upstairs to tell Harry and Ron that it was ready.

When I returned to the common room, I first went back up to my room to grab Harry and Ron's gifts, and then I took them over to the boy's dormitory. Harry and Ron were the only ones left in their dorm, so I didn't think twice about barging in, pulling their curtains back and screaming, "Wake up!"

I told them about the potion, and after a quick exchange of gifts, I headed back to my own dorm, as Harry and Ron both seemed rather uncomfortable with my presence in their dormitory.

When I returned, I took a moment to enjoy Christmas and open my presents. Harry and Ron had gotten me candy, as usual. Mum and Dad had finally caved and tried out sending owl post and had sent my present back with the owl I had used to send the letter explaining that I would be staying at school.

There was a note saying they were disappointed they wouldn't be seeing me, but that my studies came first and that they understood, just as I knew they would. I felt a pang of guilt, knowing I had lied, but I shoved it away. They had also sent a muggle novel, saying that if I had any free time, I might find it more enjoyable than a textbook. I had also received a tin of treacle fudge from Hagrid, but upon opening it, I realized it would most likely break my teeth, so I decided not to eat it.

The rest of the day was great fun. Harry, Ron and I went outside with the rest of Ron's family and played in the snow for a while, and then we trooped back inside for the most magnificent Christmas dinner I had ever had. The Great Hall was wonderfully decorated, and there was even enchanted snow falling from the ceiling. The food was amazing, and everyone was merry and laughing loudly.

It was very different from the quiet Christmas I was used to with my parents. We normally spent the day together talking only a little bit and mostly spending the day in a comfortable silence. Dinner was usually a quiet affair, and after, we would clean up together and then retreat to our own rooms. Though I missed my parents, I found that I very much enjoyed spending Christmas with my friends this year.

Finally, after we had all eaten more than we should have, I'm sure, though Harry and Ron still seemed to be eating with gusto, I ushered them out of the Great Hall. It was time to use the Polyjuice Potion.


	30. Hermione the Cat

Chapter 30: Hermione the Cat

Once Harry and Ron were sorted, taking care of Crabbe and Goyle, I headed straight to the bathroom to ensure that the potion remained in the same shape I had left it in. When I arrived, I discovered that the potion was emitting a thick, black smoke.

"Oh no!" I cried in dismay, dropping my bag to the floor and rummaging through it until I found _Moste Potente Potions_.

"It's been doing that for about three hours," Myrtle informed me matter-of-factly.

"And why didn't you come and tell me?" I demanded irritably as I flipped through the book to the page with the recipe for the Polyjuice potion. "It's not like you can't leave this bathroom. I know you wander the castle now and then. You could have told me as soon as it started smoking and I could have done something about it!"

"It's none of my business what you're doing with that thing," Myrtle shrugged, seemingly unconcerned. "Besides, if this potion is ruined, then you'll just have to brew another one, right? And then your friends will have to spend more time here."

"I don't have time for you and your crush on Harry right now Myrtle," I grumbled, scanning the page for any mention of black smoke. "I've got a bit of a crisis situation going on."

Grumpily, Myrtle retreated to her cubicle and I flipped to the next page. I let out a sigh of relief as I read the paragraph at the top of the page.

_If potion is intended for immediate use, ensure that it has completely cooled before adding the final ingredient. If potion is intended for prolonged storage, add three drops of natural spring water for every four months, to extend shelf life. Please note that if potion is left too long without being treated for storage, it will begin to smoke. This will not affect the effectiveness of the potion, but will make it more difficult to store, as it will now go on smoking forever._

"Phew," I breathed. I hadn't originally read this part of the recipe since we had no intention of storing the potion long-term. I mentally chastised myself for not having read it through though. I'd gotten lucky, but the paragraph could have just as easily said that once the potion began to smoke it would be rendered useless.

I decided to take this as a learning experience, and carefully stirred the potion a couple of times to make sure that it was thoroughly mixed before being consumed.

Harry and Ron arrived with hairs from Crabbe and Goyle and I began to ladle out the potion into three glasses. Then I put them down and reached into my bag for the bit of Millicent Bulstrode's hair that I would be using for my own transformation. I uncorked the vial I'd been keeping it in and shook the hair into my glass. The potion hissed and started bubbling like mad. Then it settled to a sickly sort of yellow.

Harry and Ron added Crabbe and Goyle's hairs to their own glasses, and then the three of us separated, each taking a different cubicle for the transformation. Harry called out a countdown from three, and as he came to the final number, I shut my eyes forcefully and raised the glass to my lips, already cringing before the potion even touched my tongue.

It tasted horrible. I immediately wanted to throw up, but I forced myself to continue ingesting it until the entire glass was drunk. Almost immediately, I could feel the potion taking effect. I could feel my insides churning, moving, changing. Then, I started to feel a strange sensation. Hair was poking its way up from under my skin all over my body; even on my face. I could feel my ears getting bigger and bigger and hairier and hairier. I felt a strange zap behind my closed eyelids, and I assumed my eyes had changed color. Then I felt the strangest thing of all. Something long pushed its way out of my lower back and began swinging back and forth. I could sense it in my body; control its movements, like it was another arm or leg.

In horror, I opened my eyes and reached around, only to grab hold of a huge, furry tail sticking out of my body. I was pretty sure Millicent Bulstrode did not have a tail, and I began to panic. Clearly the potion had not worked. I could hear Harry and Ron talking outside my cubicle, but I was in too much of a panic to listen. I plunged my hand into my bag and grabbed a mirror, holding it up to my face.

When I saw the reflection, I almost screamed. Instead, I backed away from it into the stall wall and dropped it back into my bag, willing it not to be real. I had the face of a cat. I still had my hair and my body shape, though all the extra hair I had felt sprouting up all over had turned out to be fur. The worst though, apart from the tail, was my eyes. I had been right about them changing color. They were now a bright, piercing yellow.

I heard a bang on the stall door. It was Ron, impatient to get moving.

Forcing myself to respond, I told him that I wasn't going to go after all. I could tell Harry and Ron were confused – I'd been so committed to this plan, so determined to see it through. Why would I back out at the last minute? But I couldn't let them see me – couldn't let them know just how badly I'd messed up. They'd never let me live it down if they knew the truth.

No, I would just wait here in my cubicle for the hour until the potion wore off. Harry and Ron would get the answers we needed, and nobody would have to know about my colossal mistake.

Thankfully, the boys accepted my decision to remain behind. I heard the door open; I heard their footsteps move out into the hall, and then I heard the door shut behind them. I was alone.

Sitting down on the floor, and I opened _Moste Potente Potions_ in the hopes that there was some mention of animal transformations somewhere that would give me any useful information on my current condition. If I was lucky, it would say that I would be back to normal in an hour, just like Harry and Ron. If I was unlucky…

_The Polyjuice Potion is used to temporarily transform the drinker into the physical form of another. The use of the Polyjuice Potion must be limited to human transformation, however, as the attempt of an animal transformation would lead to a permanent and incomplete transformation._

I gasped in horror. A permanent and incomplete transformation. These words stared out at me from the page. I was stuck like this forever. Forever is a long time. I felt a whole bunch of emotions run through me which resulted in an onslaught of tears.

"Who's crying?" came a voice I recognized as Moaning Myrtle's. I tried to quiet my sobs, as I really didn't want her to see me, but it was no use. She floated into my cubicle, and upon seeing me, she began to laugh hysterically.

"What happened to you?" Myrtle asked.

"Nothing," I replied, hiding my face.

"You turned yourself into a cat. Now everyone's going to call you Her-meow-uh-nee," Myrtle cried, as she burst out laughing.

As she continued laughing and taunting me, I pulled Moste Potente Potions back into my lap, as I had dropped it, and tried in vain to find anything that would help me. Maybe there was a chance, if I acted quickly. Maybe there was still something I could do.

But for all my searching, no matter how many times I re-read the section on the Polyjuice potion, there was nothing new to be gleaned. I was stuck like this forever. Serves me right for not double checking the hairs before adding them to my potion.

After a little more than an hour had passed, I heard the bathroom door open and slam shut. I knew Harry and Ron were back, and I panicked. I wasn't ready yet. I hadn't figured out what I was going to tell them. I hadn't had enough time to come to terms with my new reality.

Tears prickled at my eyes as Ron pounded on my cubicle door. By now they would look like themselves again, but I would never look like Hermione. I would forever be half-cat, and half-human. Maybe I could shave the hair off my face, and maybe I could get contact lenses that matched my old eye color, but I would still have a tail. I would still have huge cat ears sticking up above my hair. I was a freak, an abomination.

I was ashamed.

"Go away!" I cried out, knowing it would be no use.

Harry and Ron were much too good of friends. I knew they wouldn't leave without knowing what was wrong, convinced that they were that they could somehow help me. Of course, I knew there was nothing to be helped, but it wouldn't stop them. So, filled with trepidation and woe, I stepped out of my cubicle and allowed them to see what I'd become.

The looks on their faces made me want to turn around and lock myself in the cubicle forever. This was how people would look at me from now on. I wouldn't be able to go anywhere without freaking people out. Children would run scared from me. Adults would look at me in disgust and then ridicule me.

I explained to the boys what had gone wrong, unable to help myself from crying a little bit. Ron was altogether unhelpful, muttering 'uh oh' and furrowing his brow, as if he could come up with a solution by himself if he frowned long enough. Myrtle only continued to tease me mercilessly. And Harry, to my dismay, insisted I go to the hospital wing.

I tried to protest. I didn't want anyone seeing me like this, let alone Madam Pomfrey. And I didn't want the adults to realize just how big of an idiot I was. In the end though, I agreed to go, because I couldn't just live in the bathroom for the rest of my life.

When we arrived at the hospital wing, Madam Pomfrey was surprised to say the least, and immediately asked what had happened. I told her I drank an unknown potion, as I would have been in great trouble if the adults discovered I had brewed an illegal potion using a book from the Restricted Section of the library.

At first, I wasn't sure Madam Pomfrey was satisfied with this answer. She pursued her lips and gave me a calculating look, but in the end, she simply prepared a bed for me and gave me a potion to drink. I wasn't convinced it would help. _Moste Potente Potions _had been clear that my transformation was permanent. But I trusted that Madam Pomfrey knew what she was doing, and so I drank the potion without argument.


	31. In the Hospital Wing

Chapter 31: In the Hospital Wing

It turned out I was going to be stuck in the hospital wing for a while. According to Madam Pomfrey, the potion I was taking to transform back into myself was extremely strong and could only be tolerated in small doses.

She did give me a choice. Since I was technically not sick or injured, there was no reason I _needed_ to complete my transformation back in the hospital wing. If I wanted to, I could go about my regular activities, stopping into the hospital wing twice a day to receive my potion. I could attend my classes and sleep in my own dorm even.

Or, I could remain in the hospital wing where nobody would have to know what had happened to me.

It was a tough decision to make. On the one hand, if I stayed in the hospital wing, I would miss classes. I would have to rely on Harry and Ron's notes until such time as I became well enough to return to class. On the other hand, if I went about my normal life, everyone would see me. And I wasn't sure I could take the humiliation and the teasing.

"I'll stay here," I finally decided.

Madam Pomfrey nodded, and immediately fetched a large screen that she could wrap around my bed so that I wouldn't be visible to anyone who might be visiting the hospital wing.

I felt wretched. I felt like I was giving up. I felt like I'd been defeated. I was letting this accident ruin my life. Even Madam Pomfrey didn't know how long it was going to take for me to fully complete the transformation back. I could be stuck in here for months. But I just couldn't face everyone. So, ashamed and guilty, I settled into my new temporary home, trying to make the whole situation feel less awful.

Harry and Ron came to visit the next afternoon.

"Alright, so what do we do next?" Ron immediately demanded as the two boys took seats on either side of my bed.

Though I was still embarrassed about my appearance, Harry and Ron seemed to have gotten used to it, enough that they didn't stare at me or make me feel too uncomfortable.

"What do you mean?" I asked, confused. It wasn't like I was going to be able to do all that much from my current position.

"Well if it's not Malfoy who's opening the chamber, it's still somebody," Ron insisted.

"But it could be anybody," I pointed out. "Without any leads…"

"We know it's someone in Slytherin," Ron said.

"We don't – "

"The _heir of Slytherin_, Hermione," Ron stressed.

"It's probably safe to assume it's someone in Slytherin for now," Harry declared. "Unless you still think it's me."

"Oh, come off it," Ron rolled his eyes. "Neither one of us ever thought it actually was you. We only said that as far as the facts go, you couldn't be ruled out."

"But facts aren't everything," I spoke up.

At this, both boys turned and looked at me with incredulous faces.

"Did that sentence just come out of your mouth?" Ron asked in shock.

I shook my head in exasperation. "Don't get used to it," I replied. "Anyway, I'm not sure there's anything _to_ do now. It's not like we can start going around interrogating all the Slytherins."

"Maybe you could do some research," Ron suggested. "We know the chamber was opened fifty years ago. What if you went through old school records to see if anyone that's at school now has a connection to anyone who was at school then?"

"Well seeing as I'm going to be stuck in the hospital wing for the next little while, I don't think I'm in any position to be doing intensive research," I pointed out. "Why don't you and Harry take a crack at it?"

Ron's face immediately fell, and Harry suddenly looked nervous.

"Well, I've got Quidditch practice," Harry said. "I'm not sure I'd have enough free time for that kind of research."

"Yeah, and I – "

"And you?" I asked, challenging Ron to come up with an excuse.

"I need to focus on my studies," Ron declared. "Now that we're going to be starting second term, I have to step things up."

I rolled my eyes.

"Fine," I said. "If neither of you want to put in the effort and do the research, we can just hold off until I get out of the hospital and then I'll see what I can dig up."

"Great," Ron said, his frown turning to a grin.

We chatted for a little while longer, and then Harry and Ron took their leave, not wanting to overstay their welcome with Madam Pomfrey. As they left, I found myself shaking my head at them both.

Ask them to drink an illegal potion and sneak into the Slytherin common room to interrogate someone who's possibly setting a monster loose on the muggle-borns of the school, and they jump at the opportunity. Ask them to crack open a book, and suddenly they have bigger priorities than saving the school from a psychopath.

Term started up again, and I started to feel very lonesome in the hospital wing. I could hear students walking by throughout the day, laughing, talking, and generally having fun. I missed being able to be with my friends, I missed going to class, and mostly I missed the feeling of being a part of a larger community. Stuck in the hospital, I felt like I was cut off.

The only rays of light in my day were when Harry or Ron would come and visit me. They brought me their notes to copy, assignment instructions, textbooks and other supplies. They also brought me gossip, telling me about everything that was going on beyond the screen that surrounded my bed.

I learned that over the holiday, Neville's toad, Trevor, had fallen ill, and as such had remained at home with Neville's grandmother to heal. I also learned that Seamus had gone to a New Year's Eve party that his older cousin had been hosting, and had gotten drunk, much to his parents' disapproval.

I suspected that there were quite a few rumors floating around the school about me, but whatever they were, Harry and Ron kept them quiet. Whenever I asked, they would just shrug and say that they hadn't heard anything, for which I was grateful. I doubt I'd really have wanted to know what people were saying about me.

Over time, I could feel my fur starting to grow shorter and my tail getting smaller. I spent my days recopying Harry's notes for myself, which took a lot more time than I would have expected. Though Harry's notes were dismal, Ron's were even worse, so I did my best with Harry's untidy chicken scratch scrawl. In the beginning, I suspected that he was trying to be more neat, to make it easier for me to read his notes, but the neater his writing was, the less detailed, so I demanded that he go back to his scribbles and leave me to play detective on my own time.

Thankfully, I had read my textbooks in advance, so I had already been exposed to most of the subject matter. What irked me the most was that I was surely missing key facts provided by the teachers that Harry and Ron were missing. Whenever I got out of the hospital, I would have to check in with each of my teachers to make sure I was still up to date on everything.

"Queen to D5."

It was a Thursday night, and Ron and I were playing wizard's chess in the hospital wing. Harry was off at Quidditch practice and I'd already finished all my assignments, which Ron had tucked away in his bag with his own to hand in for me tomorrow.

"Bishop to H3," I directed.

"So how much longer do you think you'll be stuck in here?" Ron wondered, directing one of his rooks to decapitate my bishop.

I shrugged. "Madam Pomfrey doesn't like to make guesses," I replied. "But if I were to give a rough estimate… based on the progress I've been making and how long I've already been in here… I'm hoping I'll be back in classes early next month."

"You'd think it wouldn't take so long to transform you back," Ron muttered. "It only took a few seconds to turn you into a cat."

"It's something about the body's ability to tolerate the potion," I explained. "I don't fully understand it, Madam Pomfrey doesn't like to explain, and it's much more advanced than second year potions. Anyway, I have to take it in small doses or else risk damage to my internal organs."

"Well I hope you come back to class soon," Ron declared. "It's not the same without you around."

"I hope I get out of here soon too," I agreed. "I'm getting awfully tired of sitting in this bed and staring at the same screen all day long."

"I don't know how you do it," Ron declared. "If it were me, I'd be itching to just get out for a walk around or go watch Harry's Quidditch practice."

"You didn't want to go watch it tonight?" I wondered.

Ron shrugged. "I don't like the idea of leaving you alone in here all the time," he replied awkwardly. "You should have company sometimes too."

Smiling at Ron's thoughtfulness and caring, I looked back at the chess board, studying it intently.

"Knight to A1," I ordered, trying to get my men out of Ron's line of fire. I was definitely playing a much more defensive game than I would have liked.

It only took a few more moves, and Ron had overtaken my king.

"Checkmate," he smirked.

I shook my head. "You won't even show mercy on me while I'm stuck in the hospital wing," I muttered.

Ron smirked. "Would you have wanted me to?"

I thought about it for a second and then had to agree. I didn't want Ron to let me win, no matter the circumstance. When I finally beat him, I wanted it to be on my own terms.

"Best two out of three?" I asked, hoping that Ron didn't have to leave soon.

"You're on," he declared, already setting the board back up again.

In times like this, I didn't mind so much being stuck in the hospital wing. It was almost nice, in a way, to know that my friends cared about me enough to visit me as often as they did. And my schoolwork could take a month away from classes. I was smart. I'd catch up. In that, I had complete faith.


	32. Petrified

Chapter 32: Petrified

When I finally got out of the hospital wing and was able to return to my own dorm, found that my welcome was less than warm.

"Oh, so you're back then?" Lavender frowned in my direction when I walked in.

"That's right," I nodded uncomfortably.

Lavender shrugged. "It was fun while it lasted," she muttered quietly, though still loud enough for me to hear.

Trying not to let her comments bother me, I headed over to my bed to get my things in order. I hadn't been back since Christmas and my Christmas presents were still scattered across my bed, though it seemed that the elves had taken care of the wrappings.

That evening, Harry revealed a diary that he'd found in Myrtle's bathroom. As it had belonged to someone who'd received an award for special services to the school fifty years ago, I immediately suspected that it could have some connection with the Chamber of Secrets. I tried a few different things to get the diary to reveal it's contents, but none of my efforts accomplished much.

As usual though, I wasn't ready to give up.

Just as promised, starting the very next day, I began my research in the library. I had a few things on my list of things to look into this time. As Ron had suggested quite wisely in the hospital wing, I wanted to look through records of past students to see if anyone who'd been at Hogwarts fifty years ago had any sort of connection to anyone who was at Hogwarts now. I also wanted to look into Tom Riddle and see if I could learn anything about why he'd received his award. And finally, I wanted to look into methods of uncovering hidden information. There was something in that diary, I was sure of it. And whatever it was, I was determined to figure out how to expose it.

It felt a lot like my research into Nicolas Flamel last year, though this year I actually had concrete things I wanted to look up, rather than just paging through any and every book that might contain something useful. But just like the year before, Harry and Ron showed no interest in helping, spending most of their time up in the common room being stupid while I slaved away in the library.

I didn't really mind. I enjoyed doing research. But time was running out. Harry and Ron, and the rest of the school, it seemed, were reassured by the fact that there hadn't been an attack yet since term had resumed. I wasn't so optimistic. Another attack was coming, I could feel it.

However, I still had other things I had to do. There was still my schoolwork. I wasn't as behind as I'd feared I might be upon returning to class, but I still wanted to put in a little extra effort to make up for my time in the hospital wing. And there were also my friends, who I knew it was important to spend time with, even with everything that was going on. I'd realized yet again during my time in the hospital how important Harry and Ron's friendship was to me, and I didn't want to take it for granted.

It also turned out that there was another person that needed my help. Ginny. I had sensed that something strange was going on with her after Colin had been attacked, but she hadn't seemed to want to talk about it, and I figured it was best left for her siblings to handle. But when Valentine's Day rolled around and Harry received a very embarrassing singing Valentine, I immediately knew she had sent it.

This time, I sought Ginny out. She was sitting in the corner of the common room looking miserable and my heart ached for her. She was clearly still dealing with some strong feelings, and I'd waved them off as a silly little crush.

"Hi Ginny," I greeted her, startling her a bit. "Can I sit with you for a moment?"

Ginny shrugged. "I guess so," she agreed, motioning to the chair across from her.

I sat and gave Ginny an earnest look. "You sent Harry the Valentine," I stated matter-of-factly. This wasn't the time for beating around the bush. This was the time for bluntness.

Ginny's face immediately turned red and she buried it in her hands.

"Was it that obvious?" she asked, seemingly mortified.

"Don't worry," I assured her. "I'm sure nobody else figured it out. I only did because you'd told me about your feelings for Harry already."

"You didn't tell him, did you?" Ginny asked, peeking through her fingers at me with a terrified look.

I shook my head vehemently. "I would never do that to you," I assured her. "But I do want to talk to you about it. Maybe you could look at me properly?"

Slowly, Ginny pulled her hands away from her face, and the redness slowly started to fade away.

"Listen Ginny, you can't be sending Harry singing Valentines," I informed her.

Ginny squirmed uncomfortably.

"I know that you like him, but what you're doing – having a dwarf sing about his eyes in the middle of the corridor isn't going to make him like you," I informed her. It may have been a little harsh, but she needed to hear the truth.

Ginny looked miserable.

"You don't have to say it Hermione, I understand," she muttered dejectedly. "He'll never like me, and I should just move on and get over myself."

I shook my head. "That's not what I'm saying," I disagreed. "I'm saying that this isn't the way to get _any_ guy to like you. If he's ever going to be interested in you – and I'm saying if here – it's going to be because he likes who _you_ are."

"But I don't even know who I am," Ginny moaned. "How am I supposed to show him something if I don't even know what it is?"

"Maybe it means you need to figure yourself out before you start going after him – or any guy," I said. "Do you even have any friends?"

Ginny shrugged. "Well I was talking to Colin a bit before… you know… because you told me to. But now that he's… well…" She trailed off.

"Okay," I said, taking a deep breath. Telling her to befriend Colin might not have been as solid advice as I'd meant it to be. "Well I think maybe it's time to make some friends. Some real friends. Not just befriending the people I suggest but looking for some people you can really get along with. Stop thinking about Harry, and about boys in general, and just try to live. And then, once you're just being your true and honest self, that's when boys will start noticing you."

"So, you're saying to get boys to notice me, I have to stop trying to get boys to notice me?" Ginny frowned.

I shrugged. "In a nutshell," I agreed with her summary. "And don't hold out for one guy, Harry or otherwise," I advised. I didn't want her pinning all her hopes on Harry only to be disappointed. "The right guy will notice you when the time is right. And if that turns out to be Harry, then great. If not, I'm sure there's some other guy out there even more amazing than Harry."

"Nobody's more amazing than Harry," Ginny said emphatically.

I gave her a hard look.

"But I understand," Ginny nodded. "Thanks for your advice, Hermione."

"Don't worry about it," I assured her as I stood up.

Though a lot of my motivation for talking to Ginny had been for her benefit, part of me had also done it for Harry. He didn't need someone following him around and worshipping him. He hated the attention, hated being put up on a pedestal for no reason. So, a part of me also hoped that in having this conversation with Ginny, Harry would get some relief from whatever else she'd been planning to do.

The next morning, Harry revealed to Ron and I that the diary did indeed have information to share. The way it had shown Harry what it knew was awfully strange – apart from a pensive, I didn't know of any way to view memories. And in this case, it seemed like the diary had pulled Harry into the memory rather than Harry diving in himself. It was all rather strange.

And what Harry had learned – well I just couldn't believe that Hagrid was behind the attacks now. Maybe it had been an accident the last time. He did have an unhealthy attraction to dangerous creatures. He'd probably come across the monster and let it out without realizing the damage it would do. But he'd know better now. And the threatening message on the wall? No, it definitely wasn't Hagrid this time around, regardless of what had happened fifty years ago.

Easter came around and still, there hadn't been an attack. And suddenly, there was much more to think about than the diary and the Chamber of Secrets. In third year, students were allowed to take elective courses. There were five to choose from; Divination, Muggle Studies, Arithmancy, Ancient Runes, and Care of Magical Creatures. We were provided with information packages to look over to help us with our decision.

I tried talking to some of my dorm mates to decide, but that wasn't very helpful. Lily Moon was Muggle-born like me and didn't know much about what the new courses offered. Parvati and Lavender thought Divination and Care of Magical Creatures were easiest, so they chose those courses. Sally-Anne decided to copy them so that she wouldn't be alone in her classes and Lily ended up taking both those two courses and Arithmancy, claiming to want to try different things.

In the end, I signed up for all five courses because I didn't want to let any opportunity slip past. I hadn't yet decided on a career. What if I decided I wanted to work in the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures at the Ministry, but I hadn't taken Care of Magical Creatures? Or what if I decided I wanted to be a Curse Breaker, but hadn't taken Ancient Runes?

In preparation for these new courses, I started reading up on them in my spare time. My research in the library hadn't produced any suspicious connections between the students from fifty years ago and the students attending Hogwarts today, apart from the fact that I had found Hagrid in the registry of students from fifty years ago.

I was reading a book entitled _Ancient Runes Made Easy_ when Harry came down from his dormitory with some disturbing news. Tom Riddle's diary had been stolen from his trunk.

Suddenly, my interest in the Chamber of Secrets mystery was renewed.

It was the next day, on the way to the Quidditch pitch for the Gryffindor vs. Hufflepuff match, that I had a breakthrough. Harry, Ron, and I were just stepping out of the Great Hall when I heard a very faint hissing noise. Then suddenly, Harry jumped and shouted that he'd just heard the disembodied voice again.

Realization flooded through me. A voice that only Harry could hear; how could I have been so blind? It had been staring me right in the face the whole time and I hadn't put the pieces together. Harry could speak Parseltongue! And as far as we knew, he was the only person in the castle, besides perhaps the Heir of Slytherin, who could. The disembodied voice had to belong to a snake! Which meant…

I bolted off to the library, not worrying about Harry and Ron for the moment. I could fill them in after the match, once I had more information.

Upon arriving in the library, I ran straight up to Madam Pince and asked where I could find a book on different types of snakes. Thankfully, she wasn't busy, because most of the school was heading out to the Quidditch pitch to watch the game. She located a book for me entitled _Snakes of the World: The Magical and the Non-Magical_, and I skipped straight to the magical section.

It didn't take long to find what I was looking for. When I got to my third type of snake, my eyes widened as they read about the basilisk.

It was called the King of Serpents, and it immediately sounded like exactly the kind of creature Slytherin's Heir would want to control. The book also indicated that basilisks could live hundreds of years, which would account for how it was still alive all these years since the founding of Hogwarts.

I skipped forward, looking for something about petrification, but found nothing. The book said that anyone that looked directly in a basilisk's eye would die immediately, but so far none of the victims had died. I frowned, but then something else clicked.

The water on the floor the night Mrs. Norris had been petrified. What if Mrs. Norris only saw the reflection of the basilisk's eye? And Colin had been holding his camera to his eye when he'd been petrified. He'd have seen the basilisk though a lens. And as for Justin, what if he'd been looking at the basilisk through Nearly Headless Nick? Whatever kind of death beam the basilisk was sending out from its eyes was being affected by the various mediums its victims had been viewing it through. What if the result of that was that people were being petrified instead of killed?

I was suddenly unable to breathe. If that was the case… then all the attacks so far had only survived by chance, by accident. The basilisk was looking to kill, not to petrify. And it was on the loose right now. Harry had heard its voice. It was already looking for its next victim. And without a convenient flood, or a camera or a ghost to look through, the next victim would soon be dead.

I had to tell someone. I had to tell Professor McGonagall what I'd learned. There wasn't much time. But already I could hear Professor McGonagall in my head challenging my claims.

According to the book, basilisks were huge, and got bigger the longer they lived. This basilisk had been living in the bowels of the castle for centuries. How was it travelling around the castle undetected?

Harry kept hearing it in the walls. However it was travelling, it definitely wasn't moving around out in the open. And then it came to me. There were pipes in the walls.

Quickly, I scribbled this down on the page of the library book and ripped it out, crumpling it up and grasping it firmly in my fist. I knew Madam Pince would be livid when she found out what I'd done, but this was an emergency and I didn't have time to wait for her to check the book out the proper way.

As I moved towards the entrance of the library, I became very aware of the fact that the basilisk was out there, and I was completely unprotected. Rummaging around furiously in my bag, I searched for something that could help me. A blindfold of sorts would be ideal for avoiding the basilisk, but it wouldn't be practical. I needed to get to Professor McGonagall's office quickly and didn't have time to be bumping into walls and falling down the stairs.

Instead, I grabbed a small pocket mirror that I regularly carried with me. It wasn't perfect. If the basilisk found me, I would surely be petrified. But that was better than death.

I held the mirror in front of me, making sure that it was the only thing I was looking at, and began walking backwards, using it to see where I was going. It was slow going, but I couldn't risk a mad dash to the transfiguration wing. I was a muggle-born, a prime target for the heir of Slytherin.

I rounded a corner and bumped into an older student, a Ravenclaw.

"What are you doing?" the girl demanded, apparently upset at almost being knocked over.

"The monster in the Chamber of Secrets," I said quickly, "it's a basilisk, and it kills you when you look it in the eye. If I only see it with the mirror, I won't die, just end up petrified."

The girl looked at me skeptically. "What are you talking about?" she demanded. "Nobody knows what the monster is, and besides, the attacks have stopped."

"They haven't," I insisted. "It's on the loose now. I have to tell Professor McGonagall."

There was a noise behind us. I felt my blood run cold with fear. The Ravenclaw girl started to turn to see what it was, but I had a really bad feeling.

"No!" I cried, grabbing her by the arm. "Use the mirror!"

I could tell she was rolling her eyes at me, but I didn't care. If this saved her life, it wouldn't matter.

I raised the mirror just a bit to get a better visual on the hallway behind us. I'd had it pointed at my shoulder and regardless of the situation, I needed to know what was going on behind us.

It happened in a nanosecond. One moment I was looking at my shoulder through the mirror and the next, my eyes had locked onto another pair of eyes. They were bright yellow, and they pierced me all the way down to my soul.


	33. Waking Up

Chapter 33: Waking Up

The next thing I knew, I was staring at the ceiling of the hospital wing – I sight I knew well by now – and a warm liquid was running down my throat, causing me to cough and sputter. Disoriented, I tried to push myself into a sitting position and discovered that my arms were as weak as spaghetti noodles.

I quickly tried to take stock of my situation. Seconds ago, I'd been just outside the library, fearfully using my mirror to check what was behind me, and then I'd seen a pair of eyes. It must have been the basilisk. Which meant that I'd been petrified.

I couldn't tell how long it had been. To me, it felt like everything had happened instantaneously. But judging by the fact that I still didn't have control over my body, I'd been paralysed for quite some time.

Finding that I could turn my head, I rolled it to my right and saw Professor Sprout pouring a potion into the mouth of Colin Creevey, who was in the bed next to mine. She must have finished the mandrake restorative draught, I thought to myself. But again, I wondered how long it had taken.

Suddenly, a sense of urgency overtook me, and my eyes went wide, my heart pounding in my chest. I opened my mouth to speak, to warn everybody what the monster was, to tell them what I'd just learned, but my voice came out garbled.

"Just relax, dear," Madam Pomfrey's voice insisted. Flipping my head to my other side, I saw her moving towards my bed with a cup in hand. "Here, drink this, it'll help restore your strength."

I obeyed for the moment, allowing Madam Pomfrey to bring the cup to my mouth and hold my head up so that I could sip from it. This potion was chilled, and as it spread through my body, I could feel strength returning to my weakened limbs.

"Madam Pomfrey!" I insisted once my jaw was working again. Instinctively, I reached up and grabbed her sleeve, keeping her in place. "Madam Pomfrey! It's a basilisk! The monster is a basilisk!"

"Don't worry dear, we already know that," Madam Pomfrey said gently, as she carefully forced my fingers to release her. "The monster's been killed and the perpetrator has been taken care of, there's nothing to worry about. That Harry Potter sure is something."

"But…" I began. Harry had solved the case? Harry had figured it out! I mentally focused on the hand that was still clutched in a fist and realized that the page I'd been holding was gone. Harry or Ron must have found it and used it to solve the mystery!

But if Harry and Ron had solved the mystery… who had been behind the attacks? And how had they gotten rid of the monster? And then again I wondered, how long had I been in the hospital wing this time?

"Shh, calm down dear. If you wait a little longer, I'll perform a final examination on you all, and you will be allowed to go to the feast," Madam Pomfrey said as Justin slowly came to consciousness.

"Where am I?" Colin Creevey asked, sitting up now that he was revived. "What happened?"

Professor Sprout tried her best to explain to him what had happened, but then Justin was awake and asking the same questions.

"No, no Mr. Finch-Fletchley, you need to stay in that bed. You've been lying there for over five months and your legs aren't strong enough to carry you," Madam Pomfrey said as Justin tried to roll out of his bed.

Over five months! Justin had been attacked just before Christmas. That meant that it had to be the beginning of June. I had been lying here for almost two months!

I panicked as I realized how much I must have missed. At least when I turned myself into a cat, I could still do my homework, but I had been completely frozen this time. I had missed everything. I was going to have to work really hard to catch up for the exams.

Madam Pomfrey did a final examination of each of us and gave us a final dose of the strengthening solution for our limbs. Then she finally allowed us to go to the feast. It was the middle of the night, and I thought that was a weird time to be having a feast, but when I entered the Great Hall, I saw that everyone was in their pyjamas, so I assumed the feast was last minute.

When I entered, I quickly scanned the Gryffindor table, until I found Harry and Ron. Upon seeing them, I found myself overcome. I ran towards them, relief flooding through me that they were both healthy. As soon as I reached them, I grabbed them both in a big hug, so glad that it was all over.

After that, we sat down, and I insisted they tell me the whole story. I was shocked when they told me that Ginny had been opening the chamber, but even more so when Harry explained that Tom Riddle – who was actually Voldemort – had been manipulating her and that she had almost died.

When Ron told me how Lockhart had been a fraud all along, somehow, I wasn't all that surprised. I had been suspecting that for a while now, as he didn't actually teach us much in class.

At half past three, Hagrid showed up and thanked Harry and Ron for clearing his name. I remembered that he had been convicted of opening the Chamber of Secrets the first time, but Harry and Ron explained that he'd been framed and it had been Riddle all along. I was horrified when I discovered that they had taken Hagrid to Azkaban prison after my attack, but at least now he was back.

Around four in the morning, Professor McGonagall addressed us all, informing us that they were going to be cancelling exams. Upon hearing this, I was immediately distressed. The only thing worse than not being prepared for exams was not being given the opportunity to write them. Now I didn't even have revising to look forward to.

I thought it rather silly that the school was cancelling exams. There were technically only four of us who'd been petrified and were actually behind. But Harry and Ron were happy, as was the rest of the school, so I kept my opinions to myself, vowing that next year I'd be sure to outperform everyone during our finals.

When I returned to the dorm, I found that similar to when I'd returned from my last stint in the hospital wing, my dormmates were less than thrilled to see me.

"So, I guess Professor Sprout got that potion finished in time for the end of the year," Parvati said upon seeing me.

"Too bad she couldn't have waited a few more days," Lavender muttered.

"Right!" Lily said quickly. "Because then it would be summer already."

"Yeah," I nodded, not even a little bit in the mood to be having this conversation. "At least it's only a few more days before we head home."

Secretly, though I was glad to have been woken up in time to see Harry and Ron before the summer holidays, I did wish I'd been left petrified a couple days longer. Then I wouldn't have had to see my dormmates until September.

I tried talking to Ginny the following morning, but she didn't seem in the mood to talk. I wanted to ask her how she was doing after everything that had happened, but she evaded me every time I approached her. In the end, I decided that she needed time to process everything that had happened on her own. I didn't want to be a bother.

A couple of days later, I received a letter from my parents.

_Dear Hermione,_

_Are you alright? We received a letter from a Professor McGonagall saying that you had been petrified but that it was alright, because they were preparing some sort of potion for you to take to make you better. We've been worried sick, and the only reason we didn't send you a letter sooner was that Professor McGonagall said you were frozen and that you couldn't move or speak. We asked to come and see you, but she wouldn't allow it. Then just a moment ago, we received a letter saying that you had been cured and that you were fine._

_We've been thinking about this for some time, and it seems that Hogwarts is a dangerous place to be. We are worried that by continuing to attend your health may be in jeopardy. Though we haven't made up our minds completely, we think it might be a good idea for you to transfer to a proper school. I'm sure the Academy would love to have you; your grades have always been excellent._

_We'll see you soon, and then we'll need to have a very serious talk. _

_Love Mum and Dad._

NO! That was my first thought after reading the letter. I couldn't go back to Muggle school. I had experienced what it was like to be a witch and do magic and it was a wonderful feeling. And I finally had friends here, something I was sure I wouldn't have if I went to the Academy. I couldn't believe my parents wanted to pull me out of Hogwarts, and I was suddenly angry that Professor McGonagall had written to them. She'd worried them over nothing, and now they were going to overreact. They'd always been uncomfortable with magic, and now they were never going to get used to it. So, fearing and preparing for the worst, I slowly began the process of packing up my things for the summer and tried to figure out how to convince my parents to let me stay at Hogwarts.

Before I knew it, we were boarding the Hogwarts Express. Harry, Ron and I got a compartment with Fred, George and Ginny and we truly had a great time. We played games and practiced our magic and ate sweets until we couldn't eat anymore.

When the train arrived at King's Cross station, I said my goodbyes to Harry and Ron and then took a deep breath as I began to search for my parents.

I spotted my parents at the very back of the platform, and I ran over to them excitedly. Though I wasn't looking forward to the conversation we were going to have to have, I realized upon seeing them just how much I'd missed them, especially since I'd elected to stay at Hogwarts over Christmas.

"Mum! Dad!" I said as Dad grabbed me in a hug and then passed me onto Mum.

"Hermione!" Mum said. "Are you alright, sweetheart?"

"Yes, Mum, I'm fine," I replied. "But I don't want to go to the Academy. I want to go to Hogwarts," I said matter of factly. I didn't want to wait. I wanted to make sure my parents knew my position from the start.

"Honey, let's wait until we're home before we have this discussion," Dad said, and I agreed to let it go for now.

"We have some exciting news," Mum said as we began to wheel my trunk out of the station.

"What?" I asked, curious.

"Your father and I have worked it all out at the office, and we're going to take two weeks off at the end of August, right before you start school, and we're going to take a nice family vacation to France," Mum announced.

"Really?" I asked, excitement bubbling up in my chest.

"Yes. We didn't see you at Christmas, and your mother and I feel that it may have been partly our fault. We don't spend much time together as a family, you know. So, we thought the vacation would be a good chance to spend time with you before you go back to school, wherever that is," Dad said.

Though I felt a little guilty that they thought they were the reason I didn't come home at Christmas, I couldn't help but feel excited at the prospect of spending two weeks with my parents and in France! I couldn't wait to get home so I could tell Harry and Ron.


	34. Letters Again

Chapter 34: Letters Again

_Dear Ron,_

_Guess what? My parents are taking me to France this summer! I'm so excited; I'm going to get to see so many historical wizarding sites! Mum and Dad will probably want to do some of the Muggle attractions too, and I'm sure those will be just as educational. I'm going to call Harry on the phone tomorrow to tell him._

_Also, there's one thing I forgot to mention before I left King's Cross. Don't leave your homework until the last minute again this summer. You're going to regret it if you do! I know I helped you with your school work last year even though I said I wouldn't, but this time I'm serious. If you're going to learn, you need to write your own essays._

_Hope to hear from you soon,_

_Love from, Hermione_

I wrote the letter as soon as I arrived home but couldn't mail it right away because it was already past closing time for the post office. Instead, I left it on my desk to be taken care of first thing in the morning and headed downstairs to join my parents for dinner.

"So, Hermione," Dad began once we'd loaded our plates and had started eating. "About your school situation – "

"I'm not leaving Hogwarts," I insisted obstinately. "You can't force me to leave."

"Hermione, we're not trying to force you to do anything," Mum insisted. "We're just worried about your safety."

"Look at me!" I insisted, suddenly glad that Mum and Dad didn't know the whole story of what had happened at Hogwarts this past year. "I'm fine. So, I was petrified for a couple of months, so what?"

"Well in her letter, Professor McGonagall mentioned something about a monster?" Mum frowned.

"Yes, we're just not sure you should be boarding at a school that has a monster creeping around the halls," Dad agreed. "When we found out about this school, we didn't think it would be so dangerous."

"But it's not dangerous anymore!" I cried. "The monster is gone."

"What if there are more, honey?" Mum asked. "I'm not sure we should take that risk."

I shook my head. They weren't understanding. They were afraid of magic, and so they were convinced that the school itself was a threat. They couldn't see that with the basilisk dead, the threat was gone.

"We just want you to consider the Academy as an option," Dad said gently. "We've already been in contact with them, and they're willing to meet with you to discuss options – "

"I won't go!" I cried. "I'll fail the interview on purpose. I'm telling you; I want to stay at Hogwarts!"

"Now Hermione," Mum said very sternly. "While we don't want it to come to this, you must realize that in the end, your father and I have the final say in this. You're only thirteen years old. You don't get to make these decisions on your own."

I shook my head frantically. They couldn't do this to me. They couldn't force me to go to muggle school. They couldn't make me leave the first place where I'd felt truly myself.

Unable to sit at the table with them anymore, I pushed my chair back, my dinner barely touched, and ran upstairs.

_To Professor McGonagall,_

_I'm sorry to bother you over the summer, but I have an urgent issue that I may require your assistance in resolving._

_My parents are very concerned about the safety of Hogwarts after the letters you sent them regarding my being petrified. They don't seem to understand that the danger has passed and seem to have decided that they want to pull me out of Hogwarts and send me to a muggle school, where they think I'll be safer._

_I know that Hogwarts is not mandatory. Parents have always been allowed to choose whether to send their children to Hogwarts, or to another wizarding school aboard, or even to school them from home. However, I feel that my situation would fall under the category of a special circumstance._

_My parents are muggles. They don't understand magic and they don't understand why it's important that I, as a witch, am allowed to continue my magical education. While parents usually get the final say in the nature of their children's education, should I not also have the right to a magical education if that's what I want? _

_Your swift reply would be most appreciated, as my parents are already making plans to transfer me to a muggle school next year._

_Again, I'm sorry to have bothered you, but I didn't know who else to ask this._

_Sincerely, _

_Hermione Granger_

After composing this second letter, I set it with the first and got started unpacking for the summer. I refused to leave my room. I didn't want to see or talk to my parents at the moment, knowing it would only lead to more arguments.

Later that evening, I could hear my parents outside my door, debating whether they should check on me or not. In the end, they elected to let me sleep on things, hoping that I would be more amenable to their plans after a good night's rest.

The next morning, I slept in so as to avoid having to see either of them, then hurried down to the post office as soon as they'd left for work. Then, I spent the rest of the day waiting with bated breath for a response from Professor McGonagall.

I spent most of the day staring out my bedroom window, and when I finally caught sight of an owl approaching in the late afternoon, I felt my spirits soar. However, as it flew closer, I realized it was just Errol, and I found myself a little disappointed.

Still eager to hear from Ron, I opened the window and let the old owl in, untying the letter from its leg and unrolling it.

_Hermione,_

_You can stop your nagging; I'm going to do my homework. There's just no point wasting the summer doing it when I can spend a perfectly good train ride back to Hogwarts copying Harry's essays._

_I tried to call Harry, but it didn't go very well. His uncle answered and I'm not sure if he could hear me – I had to scream into the thing-a-ma-jig and he still didn't understand what I was saying. Then he yelled at me and told me not to call again. I wouldn't suggest trying to call him because his uncle will probably just get madder and take it out on Harry. You should probably just write him a letter._

_I'm really glad you get to go to France. Mum's always talked about going with Dad someday, for a second honeymoon or something, but I don't think they're ever going to go. We couldn't afford something like that anyway._

_Ron_

I sighed. As I prepared to pen a response, I tried to decide whether to tell Ron about the new developments but decided against it. If Professor McGonagall and I were successful, there was no reason Ron or Harry ever needed to know that I almost didn't return to Hogwarts.

_Dear Ron,_

_DO NOT LEAVE YOUR HOMEWORK FOR THE TRAIN! It seems like a good idea now, but when you're actually on the train you're not going to do it. Besides, remember last year? You didn't even get onto the train. And when I see Harry, I am going to give him strict instructions not to let you copy him. You should take his example. He did all his work last summer and the work was actually better than the work he does during school._

_I've been thinking about contacting Harry, and I don't think I should. If his uncle's already mad at him from your call, another call would certainly set him off. Also, remember how last summer he had Hedwig locked up? If we try sending Harry letters, he'll probably just get in more trouble._

_I'm so excited for France! I'll be returning just in time for school, so I'll probably go to Diagon Alley in the last week of holidays. Maybe we could meet up there?_

_Let me know,_

_Love, Hermione_

It was a while before I heard back from Professor McGonagall. I avoided my parents as much as possible during that time, as I didn't see any point in arguing until I had more information to back my side of the argument.

My parents tried bringing the topic up a few times, but I deflected it, instead asking questions about our upcoming trip to France. I also spent a great deal of time in my room alone, working on my summer homework. Since I had every intention of returning to Hogwarts in the fall, I had to make sure I completed it all at the same high level my professors had all come to expect of me.

Finally, after waiting what seemed like eons, Professor McGonagall sent her reply.

_Hermione,_

_While I sympathize with your situation, I'm afraid there is no law that forces muggle parents to send their muggle-born children to Hogwarts. If your parents want you to attend a muggle school, they are allowed to make that decision._

_However, you are also correct in saying that you have a right to a magical education. Every witch and wizard are entitled to the most basic level of magical education and also have the right to write their Ordinary Wizarding Level Examinations, regardless of their circumstance._

_Unfortunately, this does not mean that I can force your parents to let you continue to attend Hogwarts. If they feel that your safety is at risk, they have every right to keep you at home, and even to enroll you in a muggle school. _

_If this is the path that they choose, it would be your right to request that they also provide you with a magical tutor. The Ministry of Magic has an assemblage of tutors that they employ, and I would be more than happy to put you in contact with the individual in charge of the program. The tutor would visit you in your home a few times a week and provide you with the education that you would need to be comfortable writing your O.W.L.s in three years' time._

_I'm sorry if this isn't the news you wanted to hear. Feel free to owl me if you have any more questions or concerns._

_Regards,_

_Professor Minerva McGonagall_

_Deputy Headmistress, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry_

At first, all I wanted to do was to rip the letter to shreds. I'd been hoping that Professor McGonagall would be planning some sort of magical intervention for my parents. I'd been hoping that she would tell me that I had every right to return to Hogwarts if I wanted to, and that even my parents couldn't stop me. Instead, she'd confirmed my worst fear. That my parents could, if they chose, pull me out of Hogwarts and force me to attend the Academy, or some other muggle school.

If Professor McGonagall thought that the prospect of a tutor would brighten my spirits, she was wrong. My biggest problem right now wasn't that my parents wanted to deprive me of a magical education, it was that they wanted to deprive me of the place where I'd finally started to feel like I belonged. Hogwarts was the first school I'd ever had real friends. I wouldn't find friends like Harry and Ron at the Academy. And a tutor coming to my house a few times a week wouldn't make up for everything I'd be missing at Hogwarts.

But as I continued to think about it, I realized I could use this to my advantage. Mum and Dad were terrified of magic. While my reasons for wanting to remain at Hogwarts weren't necessarily directly tied to magic, my parents' reasons for wanting to remove me were. They thought magic was bad and wanted to cut it out of my life.

But they didn't have that right.

And maybe, just maybe, if I made my case well enough, I could make them see that it was in their best interest to let me stay at Hogwarts.

_Hermione,_

_Don't worry. It seems Mum's thinking along the same lines as you. She's revoked flying privileges until I finish all my work as I haven't even started yet, so I guess I'm going to have to do it. And of course, Harry's summer work is better than his work at school. What else is he going to do in the summer? If he wasn't living with those horrible Muggles, there's no way he would do his work._

_You're probably right about not sending Harry letters, but his birthday's coming up and I'm going to send him a letter then. It wouldn't be right for him to be completely alone on his birthday._

_Also, did you see the article in the Prophet? Dad won the Daily Prophet Grand Prize Galleon Draw! We're going to go to Egypt to visit Bill. I've included a clipping of the paper in case you didn't see it. I'm so excited!_

_We'll also be returning just before school, so we'll probably be in Diagon Alley around the same time as you. Hopefully we can meet up, maybe even Harry could come._

_Ron_

Excited for Ron and his family, and also feeling badly for leaving Harry in relative silence all summer, I penned a quick response to Ron.

_Dear Ron,_

_Congratulations on winning the draw! I'm so happy for you and your family; you're going to have a great time in Egypt. I hear there are so many historical wizarding sites to visit there. I actually did know before you sent the article, I've been getting the Daily Prophet delivered. I enjoy keeping up with the wizarding world during the summer._

_I'm glad your Mum took the initiative to make you do your work. Imagine if you'd left it for the end of the summer and you'd had to do it while on holiday in Egypt?! I've finished mine, of course, as I'm about to leave for France. I don't want to be burdened with work while I'm on holiday._

_I do want to send Harry something for his birthday, but I don't know how. Do you think I could borrow Errol for the trip? Would he be able to handle a trip like that? My parcel is quite big._

_Hope to see you in London,_

_Hermione_

As I finished my letter, I heard the door slam, indicating that Mum and Dad were home from work, and with a deep breath, stepped out of my room, ready for the discussion I'd been avoiding all summer.

As I'd indicated to Ron, we were scheduled to leave for France soon. Things had been strained all summer. After Professor McGonagall's letter, I'd spent most of the time I wasn't doing homework planning my case to my parents. I needed it to be perfect, as I was likely only going to get one chance at it.

I wanted to have everything sorted before we went on holiday. I intended to enjoy our trip to France as best I could, and in order to do that, we had to have this sorted. So, I nervously descended to the main level, walked up to my parents, and said, "I think we should talk."


	35. A Lonely Trip to France

Chapter 35: A Lonely Trip to France

Leading me into the living room, Mum and Dad took the two chairs, leaving me to perch nervously and uncomfortably on the edge of the couch.

"Have you thought about what we talked about?" Dad asked, opening the discussion.

I nodded. "I have," I replied. "And you're completely within your rights to pull me out of Hogwarts."

I could tell that my parents were surprised by this. They'd surely been expecting resistance on that matter.

"If you want me to go to the Academy, I'll go," I continued.

I saw my parents smile at each other. My interview with the Academy was coming up, and I knew they'd been nervous that I might tank it on purpose and that they'd have to send me to a public school.

"But I'm not giving up magic," I declared then, surprising them.

"Hermione – " Dad started.

"Hear me out," I insisted, putting a hand up to stop him. "If you don't think Hogwarts is safe, that's fine. I won't go back. I'll stay here where you can keep an eye on me. But I'm a witch. I have the right to learn to use magic and you can't take that away from me."

"I thought there were rules about using magic outside of school," Mum frowned. "Professor McGonagall said – "

"Those rules are for students," I informed her. "If you pull me out of school, I don't have to follow their rules anymore."

After exchanging a few more letters with Professor McGonagall, I'd learned enough about the Ministry's tutoring program to feel confident that I could make a strong case to my parents for why they should send me back to Hogwarts.

"So you'd just be… doing magic?" Mum asked nervously. "Here in the house?"

I nodded. "The Ministry of Magic would provide me with a tutor," I explained. "He or she would come visit me here at home for my lessons. I'd be granted special permission to practice magic only within the confines of this house, as it would now be the building in which my magical learning would be taking place, much the same as Hogwarts used to be."

"A tutor?" Dad frowned. "How are you going to afford a tutor? You don't expect your mother and I to pay for that?"

I shook my head. "The muggle-born tutoring program is Ministry funded," I informed them. "It wouldn't cost you a cent."

"Well what if we simply don't allow this tutor inside the house?" Mum demanded.

I shrugged. "If you'd prefer, I can go to the Ministry a few times a week instead and receive my tutoring there. But of course, that would have to be during the day, so I'd be missing school to do it."

Mum and Dad exchanged a look and I could already tell that I was going to win. For all their talk of magic being dangerous and wanting to protect me from it, I knew that they were far more concerned with protecting themselves from it. They were scared of magic, because they didn't understand it. I'd struggled with them about it for a time, but now I was leaning into it, because it was the only way to make them see that me returning to Hogwarts was in their best interest too. It was the only way for them to stay as separated from my magical life as possible.

"Could you give your mother and I some time to discuss this?" Dad asked. His voice was steady, but I could see the panic in his face.

I returned to my room then, giving them the space, they needed to talk things out amongst themselves. In the meantime, I happily completed my herbology homework, looking forward to returning to the Hogwarts greenhouses and seeing Professor Sprout again in September.

It was awhile before Dad came knocking on my door. In fact, it was so late that if it hadn't been for my late lunch, I'd have been starving due to a lack of dinner. But I'd figured this might happen, so I'd eaten my fill before Mum and Dad had returned home.

"Your mother and I talked about it," Dad said stiffly, not entering my room. "We've decided that it's probably best all around if you simply return to Hogwarts. There's no need to complicate our lives any further."

Trying my best not to let my glee shine through, I nodded once.

"I'm glad we could come to an agreement," I replied.

As Dad shut the door, I allowed myself a moment to jump up and dance around the room in victory. I immediately penned a letter to Professor McGonagall to let her know that I would be returning to Hogwarts after all, and to thank her for her help.

Leaving the note on the edge of my desk to be mailed tomorrow, I ventured out of my room to see if Mum was planning any sort of dinner at all.

I found both my parents in their office, shuffling through papers in a manner that suggested that they were only pretending to be working.

"Hey Mum," I said, tentatively peeking inside. "Just wondering when dinner might be."

Without looking up, Mum answered me in a cold tone. "I'm not up to cooking tonight," she replied. "But you're more than welcome to make something for yourself."

I nodded and waited for either Mum or Dad to look over at me, but neither did. Finally, with the strange sense that something was wrong, I headed over to the kitchen to make myself a snack that would tide me over until breakfast.

_Hermione,_

_Egypt is brilliant! Fred and George really scared Ginny the other day with a skeleton, so Mum got really mad at them, but then Ginny was still scared, so she wasn't allowed in the last tomb, where the Muggle skeletons were mutated and had grown extra heads and things._

_Did you get your Hogwarts letter? I got mine yesterday. Can you believe we get to go to Hogsmeade this year? Percy got Head Boy. Ever since he got his badge, he's been walking around talking like he's better than all the rest of us. Bill was definitely not this bad._

_I don't think Errol can manage a trip with a big package. I'm sending him a sneakoscope and even that seems heavy for him. Maybe you could find a wizarding village in France and rent an owl?_

_Ron_

So far, my family's trip to France had been… uncomfortable to say the least. Mum and Dad still barely made eye contact with me, and we'd barely spent any time together since arriving.

"Well I'm sure there are plenty of magical attractions you'll want to visit on your own," Dad had said on our first day. "Don't let your mother and I slow you down. We'll just do our own thing. You're old enough to find your way around."

That had been the most communication I'd had with my parents the whole trip. Any time I tried to talk to them, they'd invent an excuse and take off, leaving me on my own.

It wasn't that hard to find the French equivalent of Diagon Alley – _Ruelle des Lumières_. And from there, I was directed to dozens of other exciting wizarding sites.

Mum and Dad gave me my birthday money early, so that I could spend it in France, and I used some of it to buy some floo powder so that I could travel around the country and take in as much as I could.

And while I was disappointed that Mum and Dad were acting so coldly towards me recently, I also knew that it was partially my fault. I'd known what I was doing when I threatened them with a wizarding tutor. I'd known that they would be uncomfortable having an adult witch or wizard coming to their house to teach me magic three times a week. And I'd known that in making the case that I did, I'd be backing them into a corner and leaving them with only one option; letting me return to Hogwarts.

I just wished that I hadn't had to resort to those measures.

_Dear Ron,_

_Hedwig showed up, so I sent Harry's birthday gift with her._

_France is wonderful. I've re-written my entire History of Magic essay to include everything I've learned here. Mum and Dad aren't particularly enthusiastic about going to the wizarding sites, so I've mostly been exploring France on my own._

_I decided not to tell them that the mass murderer that recently escaped prison is a wizard. Black is in the Muggle news as well as the wizarding papers, so I guess he's pretty dangerous, but Mum and Dad are already worried about the dangers of Hogwarts because I got petrified, so they don't need to know he's a wizard. Besides, it's not like he's going to show up at Hogwarts._

_I'll be arriving home soon, when do you want to meet up in Diagon Alley? I still have to purchase my textbooks and replenish some supplies. I can't believe I'm leaving it so last minute this year. At this rate, I may not have enough time to read through all my textbooks before term starts._

_Hermione_

The second half of our trip to France passed much like the first half. Mum and Dad avoided me most of the time, so that by the time we returned home, we were barely on speaking terms.

Mum and Dad immediately went back to work, without so much as sparing me a glance, and I was left to begin to pack up my things for my third year at Hogwarts.

As much as I loved my parents, I was eager to get out of their house and back to the castle. Maybe some time apart was what we needed to repair things between us. They just needed some time and some space – and to realize that I was perfectly safe at Hogwarts, regardless of what had happened last year.

So when I received a reply from Ron, I was all too eager to agree to stay with him and his family at the Leaky Cauldron the last night of August.

_Hermione,_

_Guess what!? Harry used magic and he blew up his aunt and then he ran away from home and apparently he ended up on the Knight Bus, I don't know how he managed that since he doesn't even know it exists, and then the MINISTER FOR MAGIC found him and didn't even punish him at all! Now he's staying at the Leaky Cauldron until school starts. Those Muggles must have been really horrible if he had to blow one up._

_Dad's decided that we should stay at the Leaky Cauldron the night before we have to go to King's Cross so that we can take Harry, maybe you can stay too? We could meet up at the Leaky Cauldron on the 31st and then find Harry and get our books and stuff._

_I'll see you there,_

_Ron_

_P.S. What do you think I would have to do to have the Minister personally see me to tell me I'm not getting in trouble? I wish I were famous._


	36. The Leaky Cauldron

Chapter 36: The Leaky Cauldron

"Bye Mum, bye Dad," I said, hugging each of them goodbye. We were standing in the street right outside the entrance to the Leaky Cauldron. Though I knew Mum and Dad couldn't see it, they knew that it was there, remembering from the last time they'd come with me. This time however, they made no indications that they wanted to follow me inside.

"Have a good term, sweetie," Mum replied as Dad heaved my trunk out of the car, parked against the sidewalk. "Here's some money for your books and a little for your birthday in a month," she said, handing me a stack of Muggle money.

They'd already given me my birthday money when we were in France, but I didn't say anything. This wasn't a case of them forgetting, this was them trying to justify to themselves why they were just dropping me off on the sidewalk instead of coming in and meeting with the Weasleys, and why they'd spent the past month avoiding eye contact with me.

"Thanks Mum, thanks Dad," I said, taking the money and my trunk. "I'll write when I get to school."

"Don't worry honey, you don't have to," Mum replied. I noticed the panic in her eyes, probably at the thought of having owls flying around her house again this year.

I smiled sadly. "Ok, I'll write you if I need to then," I said. "I'll see you next summer." When neither one of them mentioned Christmas, I knew I would be staying at school again this year. I turned and wheeled my trunk towards the door to the Leaky Cauldron.

When I got to the door, I turned to watch as my parents drove away back to their lives of dentistry, not even waiting to see that I got inside safely, or making sure that Ron's family was actually here.

I allowed one tear to slide down my cheek. Somehow, it felt like I had lost them this summer. Though we would never be as close as we had been before Professor McGonagall came calling over two years ago, I'd done the worst damage this summer. I'd driven a wedge between us, ensuring that they would never feel comfortable around me again.

It felt like there was a hole inside me where they used to be, and I was sure it would never be filled. When I finished with school, I would get a job in the wizarding world, and I would probably only see them every once in a while for Christmas or a birthday. Whatever hope I'd had of re-establishing those close family bonds once they adjusted to my having magic was gone. I didn't regret my choices. I just wished I'd had another path open to me.

When I entered the Leaky Cauldron, I found that Ron's family was waiting for me in the bar. I pulled myself together and quickly wiped away my tear. Then, smiling, I approached.

"Ron!" I exclaimed jovially. "How are you? Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, it's good to see you again." I turned to shake each of Ron's parent's hands in turn.

"Yes, hello dear, wonderful to see you too. You had a good summer, I suppose?" Mrs. Weasley asked. I confirmed that I had and then Mrs. Weasley asked Ginny to show me to the room we would be sharing upstairs.

Ginny remained silent as we climbed the stairs to the room. I hadn't gotten a chance to talk to Ginny at the end of last year. Everything had happened so fast after I'd been restored from the petrification and there hadn't been much time.

We arrived at the door to a room at the end of the hallway, room #18, and Ginny pushed it open.

"You can have that bed," she said, pointing to the bed closer to the door. The other was already covered with Ginny's possessions. I dragged my trunk to the end of my bed.

"How are you doing?" I inquired as Ginny hovered uncomfortably in the doorway.

Ginny shrugged. "Okay, I guess," she responded, not looking me in the eye.

"If you want to talk about anything – "

"I'll let you know," Ginny interrupted me, effectively ending the conversation.

I got the message loud and clear. She remained unwilling to talk about what she'd been through. And that was completely reasonable. She'd been through something terrible that very few people could understand. I certainly didn't expect to be able to fully understand it. I just hoped that she was talking to someone, even if it wasn't me.

When we returned downstairs, we decided to split up for the day. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley were taking Ginny shopping for her school things, Percy said he had some important things to do, and Fred and George wanted to meet up with Lee Jordan.

Ron informed me that Harry had apparently already left for the day, before he and his family had shown up, so we decided to search for him in Diagon Alley.

"Let's try Madam Malkin's," Ron said. "He might be there; I know his robes are too small to last another year."

I agreed so we started there, but Madam Malkin said he had been in earlier in the week. While we were there, Ron and I got new robes as ours were now too small too.

Next we went to Flourish and Blotts, where we purchased our books, but Harry had already been there too. When we were finished, I had used up all the wizard money I had left, so we stopped at Gringotts to have my Muggle money exchanged for Galleons.

"So, France, huh?" Ron said as we walked down the steps back into the alley to continue our search. "What was that like?"

"It was great!" I said enthusiastically. "I got to see and learn so much. And there was this little bookshop, _Librairie: Le Mot Écrit_. It was wonderful. I even found a rare copy of _Hogwarts: A History_ in French."

"Of course you'd go on vacation and spend all your time in a bookshop," Ron rolled his eyes.

"Well I didn't spend _all_ my time there," I insisted. "I did other stuff too. And I managed to learn quite a bit of French while I was there as well."

"Well I had a great time in Egypt," Ron declared. "I mean, Percy was a prick and Fred and George were idiots, and Ginny's been off since we've been home, but we got to visit with Bill, and that was pretty cool."

"He's a curse-breaker, right?" I confirmed.

Ron nodded. "They've got this huge dig going, excavating a newly discovered underground tomb. And it's filled with booby traps and things, so Bill goes down first to shut down all the traps before the historians and the archeologists and everyone else goes down."

"That sounds really dangerous," I noted.

"It is," Ron replied excitedly. "Mum hates it, but Bill loves the adventure of it all. She kept trying to convince him to come home and work a desk job at the bank, but he won't have it. Dad says he'll come home once the novelty wears off, but I'm not convinced. If it were me, I'd stay away as long as possible."

"Oh don't say that!" I exclaimed. "It's nice that your mother is worried about him. It's nice that she wants him close to home. He should cherish that, and so should you. And when the time comes, I hope you stick close to home. Having a family that cares is a luxury not everyone has."

"You're right," Ron nodded. "I forget myself sometimes. Good thing Harry wasn't here to hear all that."

Suddenly, I felt awful. Here I was feeling sorry about myself because my parents were a little standoffish of late. Meanwhile, Harry didn't even have a family. Ron was right, it was Harry we should be feeling badly for.

"We should keep looking for him," I said, wanting to forget about our conversation.

Continuing on our way, we checked the apothecary, Potage's Cauldron Shop, and even Ollivander's, not that we expected him to be at that last one, Ron just wanted to purchase his new wand. And Harry wasn't at Eeylops Owl Emporium or at Gambol and Japes. Eventually, Ron and I got tired of searching, so we decided to stop for ice cream at Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour.

We ordered ice cream sundaes and sat outside, watching the crowd passing by on the street. It was relaxing, and after doing a lot of it in France, I'd come to enjoy people watching. After a few minutes, I turned to look in the direction of Quality Quidditch Supplies and saw Harry emerge from the shop.

"Ron, look, it's Harry!" I said, pointing across the Alley.

With minimal difficulty, we were able to flag Harry down and he came over to join us. He ordered an ice cream as well, and then we sat and talked and caught up, mostly with Harry since we hadn't really seen or heard from him since June.

After we'd finished our ice creams, I decided that I wanted to purchase an owl. I had enough money, and I'd decided that I wanted a pet. Harry had Hedwig and Ron had Scabbers, but I didn't have anything. So the three of us headed for the Magical Menagerie, a nearby store that sold all manner of animals.

It was quite cramped inside. The walls were covered with cages, all containing different animals, and they were all being awfully noisy. I immediately walked over to where the owls were being kept, looking at the different birds, hoping that one of them would give me a feeling like it was meant to be my owl.

There was a horned owl that looked a bit too arrogant for me, and a barn owl that looked awfully timid. There was a screech owl making so much noise I was afraid if I purchased it I'd have a headache for the rest of my life. There was a snowy owl, but I didn't want to copy Harry. I was just moving to look at the spotted owl when a loud cry from the other end of the store drew my attention.

It seemed that an animal had managed to get free of it's cage and had jumped onto Ron's head. The shopkeeper was trying her best to pull the animal away, but it was putting up quite the fight, clearly not wanting to go back into it's cage. Curiously, I moved forward as Ron finally separated himself from the animal and ran out of the store, Harry running after him.

"And who's this?" I asked, stepping forward cautiously. The animal was now curled up in a ball on the front counter purring contentedly. I could clearly tell, now that the commotion had died down, that it was a beautiful ginger-colored cat.

"This is Crookshanks," the shopkeeper huffed, attempting to pick the cat up and stuff it back into its cage. Crookshanks however, seemed to have no intention of returning to captivity and clung to the counter with all its might.

"May I?" I asked, reaching out a hand.

The shopkeeper backed off, nodding to me to say it was alright. I reached a little further and placed my hand on Crookshanks' head, pausing for a moment and then scratching just a little behind the ears. Crookshanks purred even louder.

Looking over at the owls and then back at Crookshanks, I made a snap decision. Crookshanks was alone, unwanted, and clearly unhappy. He didn't want to go back into his cage, and I couldn't blame him. I wouldn't want to live in a cage either. And I didn't really _need _an owl. I wasn't going to be sending my parents any mail, the _Daily Prophet_ got delivered by a delivery owl, and in the summer I could always use Errol to return messages that Ron sent me.

"I'll take him," I declared.

Ron wasn't too happy when I exited the shop with Crookshanks in my arms instead of an owl cage by my side. It was none of Ron's business who I wanted as my pet, and Crookshanks would be sleeping in my dormitory, so his worry for Scabbers' safety was completely unnecessary.

Crookshanks made me happy, and that's what was most important.


	37. The Train

Chapter 37: The Train

When we returned to the Leaky Cauldron, we met up with Ron's family and everyone greeted Harry warmly. I was reminded that Harry had spent the second half of the last summer staying at the Weasley's, so of course, they would all be on familiar terms.

For dinner, Tom, the barman pushed three tables together so that we could all eat together. It surprised me how talkative and loud the Weasley family actually was. Whenever I ate with my family, the conversation was polite and quiet, and usually the evening involved lots of listening to forks scratch against plates.

I had, of course, eaten meals with loud, rambunctious groups; that was inevitable when you lived at Hogwarts and ate in the Great Hall. But when the table consisted of hundreds of students, supervised by a handful of teachers; that was to be expected. Eating with Ron's family was different.

Mrs. Weasley questioned Fred and George about their time shopping with their friend, Lee. Mr. Weasley chatted with Harry and Ron about the upcoming term. Percy spoke loudly, above everyone else, in an attempt to grab someone's attention and tell them, yet again, how responsible he was going to be now that he had been made Head Boy.

When Mrs. Weasley started asking me questions about myself, I was surprised. She asked me about my hobbies, and my favorite subjects, and I felt like she really cared about my answers. I knew my parents cared about me, but ever since I started at Hogwarts, they hadn't asked me those kinds of questions. It was nice to be able to talk to a parental figure, even if she wasn't actually my mother.

I glanced over at Ron, who was presently being teased by Fred and George, and I felt a little jealous. I wanted what Ron had. I wanted a family like this. I wanted brothers and sisters to joke around with. I wanted parents who weren't intimidated by their children. I wanted a family that spent time together and actually enjoyed it.

After we had finished eating, Mrs. Weasley insisted everyone go and pack, since we would be leaving the following day. Even though they had just arrived this morning, somehow all the Weasleys had managed to completely unpack everything they had brought.

Since I hadn't really touched my trunk since bringing it upstairs, I offered to help Ginny pack her things. We returned to our shared room and I began folding clothes that were strewn across the room.

After a few moments of silence, Ginny finally spoke.

"Do you think people are going to judge me for what happened last year?" she asked in a small voice.

I hesitated to answer, partly because I was caught off guard by the question, and partly because I didn't think Ginny was going to like my answer.

"I think you shouldn't worry about what other people think," I replied.

Ginny sighed. "That's what I figured," she said sadly.

I felt badly. I didn't want to bring Ginny's spirits down. It was clear that this was something that had been weighing on her mind for a while.

"Look, don't worry about it," I said. "It won't be as bad as you think. It'll be a little uncomfortable at first, but people will settle down quickly enough. Besides, it happened two months ago. Most people have probably moved on."

Though the majority of the students hadn't been told the real truth – that Ginny herself had been the one who'd been opening the Chamber of Secrets while under the control of Tom Riddle's diary – they still knew that she'd been the one taken into the chamber and that Harry had had to go rescue her.

"I don't want people to look at me like I'm a victim," Ginny said. "I just want to be able to move past everything from last year. I want a do-over."

"Unfortunately, we don't get do-overs," I said sadly. If we did, I would be able to go back to first year and make friends with my dormmates. Not that I regretted befriending Harry and Ron. I wouldn't change that for the world. But it would be nice to have some female friends too, especially now that I was getting older.

"Yeah," Ginny sighed. She went back to packing her newly purchased second year textbooks into her trunk.

As I leaned over to place a stack of folded robes in her cauldron, I caught a glimpse of a Quidditch poster. I said a quick thank you to myself for having read that book on Quidditch back in first year and attempted to start a new conversation.

"So, you like the Holyhead Harpies?" I asked casually.

"Oh yeah, they're great!" Ginny replied enthusiastically. "I think it's amazing that they're an all-witch team that go up against the male teams. They're so inspirational."

Since I didn't really know all that much about Quidditch, I racked my brains for something to say. I recalled the book I had read and tried to remember the paragraph on the Holyhead Harpies.

"Yeah, their defeat of the Heidelberg Harriers in 1953 was really something," I threw in as casually as I could.

"I think I want to be a Harpy one day," Ginny said shyly.

"Really?" I asked. "You play Quidditch? Which position?"

"I'm a pretty good seeker, but I think I prefer playing chaser," Ginny replied, blushing slightly.

"You should try out for the team," I suggested.

"Oh, no, I don't think so," Ginny replied, turning her head away.

"Why not?" I asked. "You've got to start somewhere. You don't have to make the team, but maybe trying out will be good for you."

"Maybe I'll try out in a couple years," Ginny mused. "Not this year, I'm only a second year."

"Why not try out now, so that you've already established yourself next year?" I asked.

"No, there's no point really. I mean, the team's already set; nobody's graduated since last year. Nobody new is going to get on the team," Ginny replied.

"You can't know that. Look at Harry, he got on the team in his first year," I said, remembering how he hadn't even needed to try out. All he had to do was break the rules and fly without supervision and Professor McGonagall had put him straight on the team. Sometimes I couldn't understand the way that the teachers think.

"Yeah, but Harry's an AMAZING Quidditch player," Ginny said. I noticed a dreamy look in her eyes and a blush appeared on her cheeks.

"Just think about it," I said instead, deciding not to call Ginny out on the crush that she clearly still hadn't gotten over.

"Okay," Ginny replied. I handed her the last of the clothes I had found and folded and then I grabbed my pyjamas out of my trunk and went into the bathroom to get ready for bed.

As I did, I could hear yelling down the hall that sounded a lot like Percy and Ron. I vaguely wondered what they were arguing about, but then dismissed it. It was none of my business anyway.

The next morning was utter chaos. Something must have happened last night, because Percy was in a foul mood and Fred and George were positively beaming and kept congratulating Ron for something. Ginny was in a panic as well, because she couldn't find her favorite quill, which she had, apparently, taken out of her trunk in the middle of the night to write in the journal she had bought to replace Tom Riddle's diary from last year. Mr. Weasley had insisted on running a thorough check on it before allowing his daughter to write in it.

Over breakfast, Mrs. Weasley told Ginny and I stories about her time at Hogwarts and then before we knew it, the ministry cars had arrived to take us to King's Cross. The ministry driver was silent through the whole ride and didn't even say goodbye before driving away. We headed towards the barrier, and I waited while Harry went through with Mr. Weasley and then Percy and Ginny ran through.

When it was mine and Ron's turn to go through, I grabbed his hand and we pretended to be strolling through the train station as we slipped through the barrier. We emerged on the other side and our hands remained linked until Ron realized that they were and pulled his away, turning and immediately asking Harry a random question about socks. I felt my face heating up, though I couldn't fathom why, and I shook my head almost imperceptibly.

We climbed aboard at the end of the train, where it seemed mostly empty, and said our goodbyes to Ron's parents. When Mrs. Weasley gave me a big hug, I was suddenly overwhelmed with emotion. It was amazing how included in the family I felt in that moment, and I remembered how awkward it always was now when I hugged my parents.

I got onto the train and turned to find that Ron was there, but Harry had mysteriously disappeared. Fred, George and Ginny all climbed on, and Harry was still nowhere to be seen. Mrs. Weasley started calling to her husband that Harry needed to get onto the train. The warning whistle blew and the guards began to come around to shut the doors. As the train began to pull out of the station, Harry appeared from behind a pillar and ran for the train.

"Ron! Open the door!" I cried, since he was closest. Ron threw it open and Harry had to jump, since the steps had already been removed. Thankfully he made it before the train picked up too much speed. He indicated that he needed to talk to Ron and me in private, so we set out to find an empty compartment leaving Ginny to her own devices.

The only compartment we could find was empty save for a man who was sleeping against the window. He was definitely too old to be a student, so I checked the name on his trunk, noticing that it said _professor_. I guessed that this was probably our new defence against the dark arts teacher, since Professor Lockhart had lost his memory at the end of last year. Since he was asleep, and the train was rather full, we decided to take the chance and Harry told us what Mr. Weasley had told him on the platform.

It was shocking to discover that Sirius Black was after Harry, but I knew he'd be safe at Hogwarts. This wouldn't be like the past two years. In our first year, Voldemort had been hiding on the back of the head of a professor working inside the school, and last year, Tom Riddle's diary had been smuggled into the school unbeknownst to the staff. But there was no way that Black would be able to sneak into Hogwarts without being caught. So really there was nothing to worry about.

The rest of the afternoon went quite smoothly. Professor Lupin – I read the name off his trunk – never woke up, even when the lunch trolley came by. When Malfoy stopped by with Crabbe and Goyle at his sides, he couldn't pull any of his usual crap because we had a teacher with us.

As we got closer to the school, it began to rain and I hoped we would get there soon so we wouldn't get too wet walking to the castle. I did some quick math in my head and determined that we would arrive in about forty-five minutes. Almost as soon as I thought this, the train started to slow down, and I looked around in confusion.

It seemed the entire student body was equally as confused as students began poking their heads out of their compartments in bewilderment.

The train jolted and came to a complete stop and I frowned, wondering what was going on. The jolt caused our luggage to tumble out of the luggage rack, and I held in a cry of pain as Ron's trunk landed on my foot. Suddenly, all the lamps went out too, and I could no longer see anything at all.

In the dark, things became even more confusing. Ron began to stumble around and I snapped at him, not understanding why he thought now was a good time to start wandering around. The compartment door opened and Neville appeared, only adding to the confusion and soon after that Ginny was added to the mix. Our compartment was getting more and more crowded, and I could feel Crookshanks, who I was holding in my lap now that all the seats were occupied, getting anxious.

Just as I was deciding whether I should take the lead and venture out into the pitch black corridor in search of some answers, an unfamiliar voice spoke and light filled the compartment, illuminating the face of the now awake Professor Lupin.

I was immediately relieved to have an adult in charge. He would know what to do. He would know how to figure out what was going on.

He started moving towards the door, but before he could reach it, it slid open on its own, revealing a cloaked figure on the other side. It suddenly got very cold. I could feel the cold penetrating deep within me and I shivered.

As I continued to stare at the creature, I realized how truly alone I was in the world and a wave of sadness washed over me. I thought about my parents, and how they'd given up on me. I thought of Harry and Ron, who though they were my closest friends, would never be as close with me as they were with each other. It became very obvious to me just how unimportant and insignificant I was. If I died, who would really care? Certainly not my parents. They'd be relieved to no longer have the burden of raising a witch. Harry and Ron would miss my help with their homework, but beyond that I couldn't imagine my absence would be felt. My dormmates would rejoice.

And then suddenly, there was light and warmth and I realized that I was wrong. My parents may not understand me, but they still loved me. They were just struggling. And of course Harry and Ron cared about me. When I'd been in the hospital wing last year, they'd visited me every day, even when I was petrified.

The light and warmth slowly faded and I was left with a strange hollow feeling. So many emotions had run through me in such a short period of time that I didn't know what to feel. I felt empty, confused, dazed.

I looked around, seeing similar expression mirrored in my friends' faces. I noticed some of them were looking down at the floor, and I followed their lines of sight to find Harry, lying there, completely unconscious.


	38. The Time Turner

Chapter 38: The Time Turner

It took a few moments to rouse him, but Harry came to, more confused and dazed than any of the rest of us. Ron and I helped him up onto the bench, worried. Once Harry had re-oriented himself, his first question was to ask who had screamed. I thought back and tried to remember hearing a scream, but couldn't.

I suddenly became very worried. Harry was hearing screams that no one else could hear. It was just like last year, when he could hear the voice in the walls but no one else could. I wondered if this was at all a similar thing, or whether he'd just hallucinated it when he'd collapsed.

There was a loud noise from behind me and I jumped, along with everyone else. I panicked momentarily, thinking the thing had returned, but it was just Professor Lupin, breaking a large chunk of chocolate into pieces. He handed them out, insisting that it would help, and we all took them gratefully.

When I bit into mine, I felt some of the hollow emptiness start to disappear. Not that it wasn't still in me somewhere, but I was less aware of it. Instead, I started to remember the happier feelings, and the bad ones became like a distant memory.

Harry asked what the thing had been and Professor Lupin explained that it had been a dementor. I played the word over in my mind, sure that I had read about them somewhere, but I couldn't remember much about them. I made a mental note to research them in the library.

Professor Lupin left then, presumably to find out what was really going on and the rest of us were left alone. Harry remained confused about the entire circumstance and as we explained to him what had happened, I heard a small sob from behind me.

I turned to find Ginny huddled up in the corner, hugging her knees to her chest. I moved towards her and put my arm around her, unsure what else I could do. She looked worse than I felt, and still hadn't eaten her bit of chocolate.

"Eat it," I urged her. "You won't feel great, but you'll feel better."

In that moment, I hoped that I never encountered a dementor again. It was the worst thing I'd ever faced, including the basilisk that had petrified me. At least I didn't remember my time being petrified.

Eventually, the train began to move again, much to everyone's collective relief. The remainder of the ride was spent in relative silence. By this point, I mostly just felt numb and sore.

When we arrived at Hogsmeade, we made our way to the carriages and climbed in. As we flew towards the castle, I noticed that there were more dementors standing guard around the castle, and I felt a shiver run through me as we crossed over the gate.

Just before we entered the Great Hall, Professor McGonagall called out to Harry and I that she wanted a word. Surprised, I turned around and tried to figure out what I could have done to make my head of house want to see me so early in the term.

Probably sensing my unease, she assured us both that we weren't in trouble. I felt immediately better. Leaving Ron to head into the Great Hall on his own, we followed Professor McGonagall along the familiar route to her office. When we arrived, she sat us down and got straight to the point, saying that Professor Lupin had informed her that Harry had fainted on the train. Almost immediately, Madam Pomfrey entered and began to fuss over Harry.

I wondered what I was doing here, if it was just to make sure Harry was alright. I got my answer soon enough. When Madam Pomfrey was satisfied that Harry was fine, Professor McGonagall asked Harry to wait outside while she spoke to me.

"As you know, Ms. Granger," Professor McGonagall began once Harry had left. "Third year students are permitted to take elective courses." I did know this, of course, and I had signed up for all of them at the end of last year, not wanting to miss out of anything important.

"Normally, students take two or three of the five courses offered," Professor McGonagall continued, and my heart sank. She was going to make me drop some of the classes. I wasn't going to be allowed to take them all.

"However, it seems that you have signed up for all five," Professor McGonagall finished.

"Yes Professor," I said, unsure what else to say.

"Normally, I would ask you to choose the courses you would prefer, as it is almost impossible to take all five," Professor McGonagall said. "However, after reviewing your file, the school has decided that since you are a model student and your grades are above expectations, you should be allowed to take as many courses as you want."

I felt a huge smile spread across my face. "Thank you!" I exclaimed.

"However," Professor McGonagall continued. "There is not enough time in your timetable to do this."

I frowned. How was I supposed to take all five courses if I couldn't fit them all into my timetable?

"I have written many letters to the Ministry and we have spent the summer in negotiations, but the Ministry had finally agreed to let you have a time turner," Professor McGonagall paused and reached into one of the drawers in her desk, pulling out the object in question.

"A time turner would allow you to go back in time and repeat an hour so that you can attend two classes at once," Professor McGonagall explained. I felt my eyes widening as I stared at the time turner. I could spend hours and hours and hours revising and I would never have to stop because I could just keep going back in time to revise more.

"But Ms. Granger, I must warn you, time turners are not toys to be played with. I am sure you, of all students, will understand the seriousness of possessing something like this. You may only use it for your studies. You may not tell anyone that you have it. The entire faculty knows, but none of the students are to find out." I glanced over to the door where Harry was waiting.

"No Ms. Granger," Professor McGonagall said. "You may not even tell your friends. Mr. Potter and Mr. Weasley are not to find out you have it. You do have a choice. You may choose not to take it, and then you could reduce your course load and take three electives. But if you take the time turner and keep all five, then it must remain a secret."

I didn't really need any time to think about it. Of course I couldn't reduce my course load! "I'll take the time turner," I said.

Professor McGonagall then handed it over to me and quickly explained how it worked and all the rules that went with it. She also informed me that I would be required to check in with her on a weekly basis, just to ensure that everything was going smoothly.

When everything had been explained, I had to sign a few Ministry papers, promising to use it responsibly and such, and then I hung it around my neck and tucked it out of sight.

We emerged from the office and joined Harry, and together we made our way back to the Great Hall. When we arrived, we looked for a place to slide into at the Gryffindor table, but it was so full with all the first years now sitting there. I was sad that we had missed the sorting, but receiving the time turner was so much better.

Finally, we located Ron and he waved us over, having saved us a couple of seats. Harry squeezed in between Ron and Seamus and I took my seat across from them and next to Neville.

As we settled in, Professor Dumbledore stood to make his annual start-of-term speech. He explained that the dementors were here to protect the school from Sirius Black and warned us to keep away from them. Though it was a relief to know that Harry wouldn't have to worry about the mass murderer finding him here at school, I also wasn't looking forward to the dementors being around all the time. I would definitely be keeping a wide berth.

He also announced that Professor Lupin would be taking the Defence against the Dark Arts job, as I had predicted.

When it was announced that Hagrid would be taking over as Professor of Care of Magical Creatures, I clapped as loudly as I could, along with the rest of our table, and I felt very happy that our friend was getting this opportunity.

After the feast, we made our way through the mass of students to congratulate Hagrid. It was quite difficult as everybody was trying to exit the hall, while we attempted to make our way to the teacher's table in the opposite direction. It took a lot of effort not to get trampled and I took a moment to readjust my robe, which was falling off my right shoulder, before shaking Hagrid's hand.

After wishing him good luck and telling him how much we were looking forward to his lessons, we made our way to the Gryffindor common room. I said goodnight to Ron and Harry and ascended to my dormitory.

As usual, my trunk was already there. I got ready for bed and climbed in, keeping the time turner safely tucked away under my pyjamas. Lavender and Parvati were still down in the common room, but Sally-Anne and Lily were sitting on Lily's bed whispering frantically to each other, probably telling each other every detail of their summer apart.

As usual, they ignored my presence completely, and I climbed into bed knowing this was just the start of another lonely year in the girl's dormitory.


	39. Crazy Timetables

Chapter 39: Crazy Timetables

When I woke up the next morning, I rushed through my morning routine as quickly as I could, eager to start my classes. I made sure my time turner was hidden and made my way down to the common room to meet up with Ron and Harry. They were running late, as usual, so I sat down in an armchair to wait for them.

I pulled out my copy of _Numerology and Grammatica_ to get a head start in reading it, so I didn't even notice Ginny approaching.

"Good morning Hermione," she said, causing me to jump and drop the textbook.

"You scared me!" I exclaimed, leaning over to pick my book up again.

"Oh, sorry," Ginny said. "I'm going down to breakfast; do you want to come?" she asked.

"I'm just waiting for Harry and Ron," I replied. "We usually go down together."

"Oh, okay," Ginny replied, turning to leave.

I noticed she was alone, and I felt bad, so I called out. "If you want, you could wait with me and come down with us after."

"Oh, no, I don't think so," Ginny said, panic appearing in her eyes. She said a quick goodbye and rushed out of the portrait hole.

I immediately regretted my choice. Ginny was clearly trying to bond with me since she didn't really have too many friends of her own, and I'd rebuffed her just like girls had always rebuffed me when I'd tried to befriend them. Obviously, she didn't want to go down to breakfast with her brother and secret crush. She'd been hoping to get some time with me one-on-one. I made a mental note to accept her invitation the next time, should the opportunity occur.

"Come on, let's go," Ron said when he arrived in the common room, as though I had been the one who took forever to get ready. "I don't want to miss breakfast, I'm starving!"

"You're always starving," Harry replied, while he finished tying his tie.

"I'm sure there will be plenty of food left," I said, leading the boys out of the common room.

When we arrived in the Great Hall, Ron headed straight for the Gryffindor table and began shovelling food into his mouth. George, who was sitting across the table from us, handed over our timetables, and I immediately tuned out of whatever conversation had just begun as I hungrily began to read over my timetable.

I saw that I would need my time turner right away. First period I had divination, muggle studies _and_ arithmancy. I also noticed that third period I had both ancient runes and care of magical creatures. I would get to start all five of the new subjects today!

I voiced my excitement about the new subjects, which caused Ron to lean over to check out my timetable. I tried to angle it away from him but it was too late. He'd seen the mess that it was and attempted to call me out on it, noting that there was no way I could attend all my classes with the limited time that I had today.

I began by trying to laugh off his comments, and when that didn't work, I changed the subject. Though he dropped the subject, I knew that this conversation wasn't over. Ron wouldn't like being in the dark.

I hated that I had to lie to him, but I'd promised Professor McGonagall. I decided that my best bet was to be as honest as possible without outright telling him or Harry about the time turner and then to divert their attention whenever I felt myself being backed into a corner.

Thankfully, Hagrid came over at that moment, to tell us how excited he was about his first lesson, and Ron was distracted. I took the opportunity to grab a bit of breakfast and then Ron suggested we get going to divination, my puzzling timetable all but forgotten.

It took about forty-five minutes, a few dead ends, and a crazy portrait of a knight who called himself Sir Cadogan before we finally located the North Tower, where divination class would be held.

My first impression of Professor Trelawney was that she was putting on a show. She had enormous glasses, a large shawl was draped over her shoulders, and she had on enough jewellery for ten people. She reminded me a lot of muggle fortune tellers, who I held in contempt, believing them to be frauds.

To my dismay, she started the lesson by telling us that books would be of next to no use to us. Already I was sensing that I would have some difficulty with this subject. As she continued to introduce the class, she interrupted herself frequently by making very generic predictions. It seemed to me that she was trying to impress us, but her prognostications were broad enough any class of our size would surely fulfill most or all of them.

As the class progressed, I tried to keep an open mind, I really did. But when Professor Trelawney tried telling Harry that he had a deadly enemy as though it was brand new information, I lost it. Of course Harry had a deadly enemy. Books had been written about it. There wasn't a witch or wizard over the age of eleven that didn't know about Harry Potter and Voldemort.

The lesson finally came to an end when Harry reached the end of his rope with Professor Trelawney for spending the majority of the period predicting his death. As we packed up and headed to transfiguration, Harry and Ron began to discuss the lesson as well as the new teacher. Neither of them noticed when I slipped around the corner and into an empty bathroom.

Just in case, I checked each of the stalls to make sure I was really alone. Then I peeked out into the corridor to be certain nobody was going to walk in on me. I pulled the time turner out from under my robe, suddenly nervous. I remembered what Professor McGonagall had told me, so I was sure I wouldn't mess it up, but I didn't know what to expect. I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and turned the small hourglass once counter-clockwise.

After a few seconds, I opened my eyes and looked around. I hadn't felt anything, and everything looked the same. Wondering if maybe it didn't work, I walked out into the hall and grabbed the first student that walked by.

"Excuse me," I said, "but what time is it?"

The student I had pulled aside was a Ravenclaw girl I didn't recognize, probably a sixth or seventh year. She rolled her eyes and told me it was five to nine. I thanked her and ran off, tucking my time turner away as I ran. It had worked! I had gone back in time. Now I just had to make sure I didn't run into myself. It shouldn't be a problem since I was up by the North Tower.

I arrived to arithmancy just as Professor Vector was starting the class. I slid into my seat at the front and pulled out my textbook. The lecture started immediately, with none of the wishy-washy introduction business like we had in divination. I could tell already that I liked this subject much better than I liked the previous one. Everything in arithmancy was logic and facts and using your brain, perfect for me.

Though both divination and arithmancy concerned themselves with predicting the future, arithmancy was a much more concrete discipline. Where divination was all about perceptions and emotions and sensing auras, arithmancy was about numbers. There was no room for debate or discussion when it came to numbers. You were either right, or you were wrong. It was much more my speed.

By the end of the hour, I had a pile of parchment filled with notes, a bunch of homework and a cramped hand, but I was happy. I gathered my things as quickly as I could and hurried to the nearest bathroom. I still had to go back in time to muggle studies.

I had to wait while a first year came out of one of the stalls and washed her hands. I think I made her nervous, standing in the corner and watching her, but I didn't have time to find another bathroom. When she was gone, I pulled out the time turner and turned it counter-clockwise.

I didn't close my eyes this time, and I watched, fascinated, as everything around me rewound. I watched the first-year girl walk into the bathroom backwards, wash her hands, go to the bathroom and then leave again backwards. A few more students came and went, and before I knew it, everything had stopped. I tucked away the time turner and heard a scream from behind me.

A girl was standing behind me, staring at me, her eyes wide.

"Where did you come from?" she asked.

I realized that for her, it must seem as though I had just materialized out of thin air. I quickly made an excuse about being really fast and really quiet and ran out of there. I needed to remember to be more careful in the future. I wouldn't be able to get away with this for long if word got out that Hermione Granger was materializing out of nowhere all over school.

When I reached the muggle studies classroom, I settled in and found that my stomach was rumbling. Even though it was technically nine o'clock and breakfast had just ended, it had been over two hours since I'd actually eaten and by now, I should be eating lunch. I tried to ignore my hunger, which was hard considering I still had to go to transfiguration after this.

Professor Burbage seemed nice enough. She introduced herself and then had everyone else introduce themselves to her. I decided that Professor Burbage was one of those teachers that try to be your friend instead of your instructor. I wasn't completely impressed, but I liked her a lot better than Professor Trelawney.

We didn't learn anything in that first muggle studies lesson, and we didn't get assigned any homework, but Professor Burbage did give us an overview of what we would be covering over the course of the year and it seemed like it would be an interesting course.

When class was over, I ran back to the first bathroom I had disappeared from. I peeked in through the door, and watched myself disappear. Once I was convinced nobody had noticed anything, I ran back the way I had come and snuck up behind Harry and Ron. They didn't even seem to have realized I had disappeared. I rolled my eyes to myself.

Ron said something about tea and I had to remind myself that they had just come from divination and I tried to put myself back in the headspace I'd been in two hours ago. It was going to take a while to get used to this. Against my will, my stomach rumbled.

"Hungry already, Hermione?" Harry joked. "Don't go turning into Ron now."

I laughed along with Harry and Ron and slid into my seat in the back of the transfiguration classroom. I was definitely going to need to remember to pack myself snacks in the future.


	40. First Week

Chapter 40: First Week

When transfiguration was over, I rushed to the Great Hall. Starving, I started shovelling food into my mouth, which got me another comment from Harry about turning into Ron.

Ron, however, still seemed to be in a bad mood from divination. I tried cheering him up with food by pushing a dish of stew towards him – food always cheered Ron up – but it was to no avail. He continued to get worked up and I tried to talk some sense into him, but ended up snapping at him and leaving instead. Ron could be so irritating sometimes.

I had both care of magical creatures and ancient runes next. Since I didn't feel like seeing Ron right away, I decided to go to ancient runes first. For the first half of the lesson, I could barely pay attention, my thoughts still swirling around the argument with Ron. However, by the end of the class, my anger had dissipated and I was in a much better mood as I slipped into a broom closet and used my time turner to go back an hour.

I made my way to the Entrance Hall, eager to see my friends again, and I almost didn't see my past self come around the corner. I jumped behind a suit of armour as she passed by and I waited until she was out of sight before resuming my journey. I really had to be more careful.

I reached the Entrance Hall, and was just heading out the door to the grounds when Harry and Ron caught up to me. Ron apparently was still not talking to me, which really hurt for a minute. I had to remind myself that we had had our argument only two minutes ago, though for me, it had been an hour and I had already cooled off.

We arrived at Hagrid's hut for care of magical creatures and were met by the Slytherins. As it was Hagrid's first class, I had assumed it wouldn't go exactly as planned. Now that I knew that the Slytherins were in the class with us, I knew something was going to go wrong. So, when Malfoy walked up to the hippogriff and began insulting it, I couldn't really say I was surprised.

It was a horrible thing to happen in Hagrid's first class, so I really ought to have felt badly, but in all the commotion, Ron seemed to have forgotten he was mad at me, so all I felt was relief and even a bit of joy.

After dinner, once we had returned to the common room, we saw that a light was on in Hagrid's hut and decided to go down to see him. I was hesitant at first, remembering what Harry had told us on the train about Sirius Black having broken out of Azkaban to find him, but really, with dementors all around the castle, it's not like he would be in any danger.

Hagrid was miserable and drunk. We tried cheering him up, but he didn't seem to be responding. Finally, I decided he's had enough and I removed the tankard he was drinking out of from the table and dumped it out in the back. Hagrid followed me, and I thought he was going to yell at me for taking his drink, but instead, he walked over to the large water barrel and sort of toppled over into it headfirst.

I returned to Harry and Ron, leaving Hagrid to deal with the water. When he rejoined us, he seemed much more sober. Unfortunately, that meant he had also gotten some of his senses back and he yelled at us for coming to see him and escorted us back to the castle.

Harry and Ron went right to bed then, not having much homework to do. I, on the other hand, had been to three classes more than them, and had lots of homework to get done. By the time I had finished all that I was going to finish, it was three in the morning and I was exhausted. I did a quick calculation, factoring in every time I used the time turner, and realized I had been awake for twenty-three hours: almost a whole day.

I checked my timetable and noted that I only had six classes today instead of eight. Then it would be the weekend. Despite this, I knew I wouldn't be able to sit through six classes with only four hours of sleep, so I snuck upstairs to my dormitory and crept into the bathroom. I pulled out my time turner and turned it three times counter-clockwise. Then I put on my pyjamas and headed for bed.

Just as I was going to turn off my wand light, Lily Moon came up from the common room. She stopped in the doorway, looking at me confused.

"Hermione! I thought you were downstairs doing homework. I just saw you," she said.

I mentally berated myself for being so careless. "Oh, yes, I was down there for a while. I came up just before you," I said, hoping she would accept this explanation. She did, but she watched me warily while she got ready for bed. I did a quick check and sighed in relief when I saw that the rest of my dorm mates were all in bed already and I wouldn't face the question again.

I fell asleep quickly that night, being extremely exhausted. When Lavender shook me awake the next morning, I had a difficult time dragging myself out of bed. My seven hours of sleep had not sufficed to fully rest me from a twenty-three-hour day. I decided I was going to have to find some way to get more sleep, but I couldn't think about it now because I was already late and I had potions first thing.

I had my first check-in with Professor McGonagall that afternoon following our final class of the day. Even though I'd only been using the time turner for two days, she had insisted that we meet every Friday afternoon so that she could make sure everything was going alright.

"Have you had any problems so far?" Professor McGonagall inquired with me.

"Well I've almost run into myself a couple of times," I confessed. "But I managed not to and I think I've got the hang of things now. And I think I'm doing a pretty good job of keeping the same people from seeing me in two places at once."

"Good," Professor McGonagall nodded. "The less people you have asking questions, the easier it'll be to keep this a secret."

I agreed. "There is one thing that's going to be a bit of a problem though," I said then, deciding to just be honest about the situation. "I've been really tired recently. With the extra waking hours my body is going through, I haven't had enough time during the night to rest from it."

Professor McGonagall nodded. "This is a common occurrence," she said. "There is a spell I can perform on you to relieve you of the exhaustion those extra hours would cause you."

It was honestly a relief to have her say that. I'd been worried that I wouldn't have time for homework if I had to start going to sleep at seven o'clock every night.

"Now let's see," Professor McGonagall muttered to herself as she rummaged around in her desk. "I know I have a copy of your timetable somewhere…"

"Here," I said, offering her my own copy.

She took it gratefully and glanced it over. "Excellent," she said. "That's four extra hours of class you've lived over the past two days."

She produced her wand and pointed it at me and I closed my eyes so as not to panic at the sight. In my head I knew she was casting a good spell on me, but any decent witch or wizard would feel a bit of natural panic at the sight of a wand being pointed at them.

She cast the spell non-verbally, so I wasn't expecting it when it happened. I felt the tiredness that was lingering in me dissipate and then I started to feel more alert and energetic, like I'd just downed a cup of coffee. It felt great.

"Thank you," I said gratefully, taking my timetable back and stowing it in my bag. "I feel much better now."

"Good," Professor McGonagall said. She had been standing, but now she took a step back and lowered herself into her chair. "Now go and study," she ordered me. "Don't let all my hard work to get you that time turner go to waste."

Not wasting any time, I hurried off to the library to get to studying. I had lots of runes to memorize before our next ancient runes class and I wanted to get started right away.

As the days passed, I started to settle into a comfortable pattern. I made the decision that whenever I had multiple classes to attend in one hour, I would do them in the same order, so as to give myself a routine. I even ended up selecting a few key locations from where it was the easiest to disappear and reappear in time, where nobody would see me. I also started coming up with better and better excuses for why I had to slip away from Harry and Ron so often.

My favorite class quickly became ancient runes. The memorization of the runes and various vocabulary words alone was enough to keep me interested and Professor Babbling was a fantastic instructor who made the class interactive by selecting students at random to read and parse sentences based on the grammatical elements of the runic languages that we were studying in any given class.

Harry and Ron's favorite class had become defence against the dark arts, and while I appreciated that Professor Lupin was by far our best teacher in the subject yet, the subject matter itself didn't excite me quite as much as that of ancient runes or transfiguration or history of magic.

Care of magical creatures turned out to be one of my least favorite classes, but I didn't dare say so for fear of hurting Hagrid's feelings. But after the mishap with Draco Malfoy and the hippogriff in the first lesson, Hagrid had basically stopped teaching us and was having us babysit flobberworms every lesson. It almost made me want to skip his lessons, if not for the fact that he would have noticed. It was a waste of an hour every time I had to attend and I wished I could be spending the time being more productive. But it gave me a bit of a break too, which I supposed was useful, especially on my longer days.

All in all, the year was shaping to be a good one. The time turner was a gift I'd never expected and I just felt special and honored to have one, regardless of the negative consequences. I was determined to make Professor McGonagall proud and get straight O's in all my twelve classes.


	41. Exhausted and Frustrated

Chapter 41: Exhausted and Frustrated

Over the next few weeks, I spent all my time in class, doing my homework, studying, eating, and sleeping. With all my extra courses, I barely had time for anything else. The only time I got to spend with Harry and Ron anymore was when they were doing their homework with me.

Sometimes I had so much to do, I would spend a couple of hours studying in the library then use the time turner to repeat those hours in the common room. Occasionally, someone would comment that they had just seen me elsewhere, but I was able to divert their attention from my mysterious whereabouts by changing the subject or complimenting their hair.

Unfortunately, I still wasn't getting enough sleep. The best I could do was to stay up as late as I could and then go back in time and sleep through the whole night. The problem was that even ten hours of sleep each night wasn't enough when I had been awake for almost thirty hours and would be awake for another thirty hours the next day.

The few hours that Professor McGonagall would cure me of at the end of each week helped, but I needed more. I'd asked if she could cure me of some extra time to make up for when I went back in time do to homework, but she politely explained that the spell she used to erase the tiredness effects of my class hours had its limitations and that she was already doing the maximum amount she could.

I couldn't repeat those hours of sleep either, because my past self would already be in my bed, and it was too risky to try sleeping down in the common room while I was simultaneously sleeping up in my dormitory. People would be bound to notice that something wasn't quite right there.

I was becoming more and more irritable too. I got especially angry whenever Harry came in from Quidditch practice complaining about his exhaustion. With the pitiful amount of homework he and Ron were assigned, and the even more pitiful amount they actually did, combined with the fact that they napped through almost every class, he really had no idea what it meant to be so tired.

I finally snapped on September 19th. It was my birthday. I had just turned fourteen. I already knew I wasn't going to be getting any owls from my parents, so it wasn't a big surprise when nothing arrived at breakfast. I was however, quite disappointed when the whole day passed by and neither Harry nor Ron mentioned anything.

By seven o'clock, I was sitting in the common room with Ron. We were working on our latest potions essay for Professor Snape about the necessity of each of the ingredients used to brew a confusing concoction while Harry was out at quidditch practice. I still had arithmancy, ancient runes, transfiguration, charms and herbology to do, and I had no idea how I was going to get everything finished.

"Hermione," Ron said suddenly, "can you read over my essay?"

I closed my eyes and gritted my teeth. I didn't even have time for this conversation, let alone to re-write an entire essay, which I knew is what Ron really wanted.

"No, I can't," I said as calmly as I could, returning to my own essay.

"Come on," Ron prodded, "it's not that big a deal, just read it over and tell me what to fix. You always help me out."

"I really don't have the time," I said, a little too loudly. I could feel anger and frustration bubbling up and, in an effort to control it, I wavered a bit on the end of my sentence.

"What's the big deal, Hermione?" Ron whined. "It's just one essay."

I exploded. "No, Ron. It isn't just one essay. It's a good ten to fifteen minutes of reading and then another hour or so of crossing things out and re-writing paragraphs for you, because for some unknown reason, you seem to be incapable of writing a decent essay. And then that is an hour of my life that I don't get to spend on my own homework, which means I will get even less sleep than I already get. Do you even know how much homework I have to do? I haven't even started translating my runes, and that's probably going to take me at least five hours."

"I am so capable of writing a decent essay!" Ron shouted back at me in indignation.

"Then prove it, write one," I challenged him.

"I did, I need you to read it," Ron replied, shoving the essay at me.

"I told you, I don't have the _time_," I cried, exasperated.

"You're not fooling anybody," Ron shouted. "Lavender tells me you're always in bed by ten o'clock!"

"I am taking way more subjects than you. Do you have any idea how much work arithmancy and ancient runes are? Let alone the weekly essays I have to write for muggle studies that all have to be at least four feet long!" I cried.

"How are you possibly taking that many subjects? We're in all of our classes together! When do you manage to go to these other classes?" Ron asked, confused.

"That's none of your business," I cried, reaching hysteria.

"None of my business? I thought we were friends?" Ron said angrily.

"Yeah, I thought so too, but friends don't forget each other's birthdays!" I yelled back, gathering up my things and throwing them into my bag. While Ron sat there gaping like a fish out of water, I furiously finished packing away my stuff and stalked out of the common room.

I was headed to the library, until I remembered that I was already in the library doing my muggle studies essay. I abruptly stopped in the middle of the corridor and pondered where I could go. I couldn't go to the library because I would run into myself. I couldn't go back to the common room because Ron was there. Finally, I decided to go to the empty transfiguration classroom, which was nearby. At least I was positive I wouldn't be seen by anyone by accident in there.

When I arrived, I spread out my things and started working on ancient runes. I was so absorbed in my work, that I didn't hear Professor McGonagall enter. In fact, her presence didn't even register until she cleared her throat.

"Ms. Granger, may I ask why you are using my classroom at such a late hour?" she questioned.

"Sorry Professor," I said, jumping up out of my seat. "It's just that I can't study in the library or my common room because I'm already there. Rather, my past selves are there. I had to come back in time to get all my work done. I thought this would be the best place to work because nobody would see me and ask questions." I decided to leave out the part about arguing with Ron being the reason I couldn't go to the common room. I didn't think Professor McGonagall would particularly like that excuse.

"You've gone back in time to repeat this hour twice?" she asked, her eyes going wide.

"Yes," I lied, since I had really only gone back once. It didn't feel much like a lie, though, because there had been times when I had gone back twice anyway.

"Ms. Granger, are you sure you can handle taking this many classes?" Professor McGonagall asked me, concern etched across her face. "Are you getting enough sleep?"

"I'm fine," I lied again. I wasn't about to tell her how utterly worn out I was or she might force me to drop some of my courses.

"Very well. I will give you special permission to use my classroom after hours due to your unique situation, but please try not to go back in time so much. Only use the time turner when it is absolutely necessary. Time is a very dangerous thing to meddle with," Professor McGonagall warned me.

"Of course, Professor, I understand," I said. When Professor McGonagall nodded, satisfied, I returned to my work and she returned to her office.

"Just make sure you're back in your common room before curfew," she said before closing the door.

It was another few weeks before anything of consequence happened again. I had spent most of my time away from Ron, working in the library and in Professor McGonagall's classroom to avoid getting angry again, but I couldn't just ignore my friends completely.

Ron and I were completing star charts for Professor Sinistra when Professor McGonagall came into the common room, posted a notice on the bulletin board, and left. Ron got up immediately to check the notice, while I stayed behind to continue working on my star chart.

"Hermione, it's the first Hogsmeade weekend! It's on Halloween!" Ron exclaimed when he returned.

"Oh, I'm not sure if I'll be able to go..." I said sadly, looking down at all my work. Halloween wasn't for another few weeks, but I was sure I would still have plenty of work to do that would mean I wouldn't have time for Hogsmeade.

"Oh, come on, Hermione, you can afford to take one day off to go to Hogsmeade. You work too much," Ron said.

I bit back the retort that came to mind, not wanting to start another fight with Ron. I thought about it for a moment, and decided that I really could use the break, even if it would mean less sleep later. I needed to take some time for myself that didn't involve school work.

"Alright, I'll go," I said finally, causing Ron to smile and a warm feeling run through me. I wasn't sure what it was, so instead of pondering it, I busied myself with astronomy. I didn't even notice Harry entering the common room until he started talking.

It was too bad that Harry wouldn't be able to join us in Hogsmeade. It was no surprise that his aunt and uncle hadn't signed his permission form though. And it was probably better anyway, with Black out and about, looking for Harry, that he stay in the protection of the castle.

Crookshanks came and joined me as I continued to work on my astronomy homework and I petted him as he sat in my lap. Harry began to copy Ron's homework, and I would have chastised them for cheating, but I just didn't have the time or the energy anymore.

Suddenly, Crookshanks lunged at Ron's bag and Ron cried out, jumping out of his chair and trying to rip Crookshanks away. Panicking, I yelled at Ron to be careful with Crookshanks. I knew he didn't like my cat, but it was no reason to hurt the poor thing. He threw Crookshanks across the room and I went running after him, scooping him up in my arms protectively as Ron grabbed Scabbers, who Crookshanks appeared to have been chasing.

I tried to explain to Ron that it wasn't Crookshanks' fault. He was a cat and Scabbers was a rat. It was in his nature to want to chase rats. But Ron was convinced that Crookshanks had it out for his pet and he stalked off to his dormitory in a rage, leaving Harry and I in the common room.

I hoped that the next day everything would be forgotten, but Ron remained mad at me. I tried inquiring about Scabbers' wellbeing, but this seemed only to anger Ron further, so I let it go and moved away to give him some space.

Later, while we were waiting to be let into Professor McGonagall's class, Lavender revealed that her rabbit had been killed by a fox. She was very upset and then told the class that Professor Trelawney had predicted this.

I couldn't see how Professor Trelawney could have made a correct prediction, and tried to explain that to Lavender, but then Ron loudly interrupted me, saying that I didn't care about other people's pets and that Lavender should ignore me.

I felt my throat constrict and tears pricked at my eyes. I didn't want to cry in front of the whole class, so I channelled some of the anger I had been pushing away for over a month and glared at Ron for the whole period instead.

When classes were over for the day, I ran up to my dormitory and locked the door to make sure I was alone. I didn't care about the mountain of homework waiting for me in my bag. I didn't care that I was wasting valuable time holing up in here. I curled up in a ball on my bed and let everything out; my frustration, my exhaustion, my anger, but mostly, my misery that my friendship with Ron seemed to be coming to an end.


	42. Conspiring with Myself

Chapter 42: Conspiring with Myself

By the next day, I knew I had overreacted. Ron remained a little angry with me for the next week, but things eventually went back to normal – at least, as normal as things could be at the moment. I was still ridiculously tired and worn out, and I still had too much homework to fathom, but for now I was managing to rein in my frustration and my friendship with Ron survived.

The morning of the Hogsmeade trip dawned and I was awakened by the loud squealing of my dorm mates. They were excited about their first trip to the village, but I was exhausted. I had used my time turner multiple times the night before to get all my work done to be able to afford to lose a whole day while in Hogsmeade.

By the time I entered the Great Hall with Harry and Ron, I had a pounding headache, and the cacophony of voices at the table was only making it worse. I couldn't imagine how I would be able to handle the day in a village packed with overly hyper students.

I tried to be sympathetic to Harry, who was moping because he couldn't go on the trip. I promised we'd bring him back a bunch of candy from Honeydukes to make up for the fact that we were leaving him alone at the castle all day. To be honest, though, I really wished I could trade places with Harry. I wanted nothing more than to curl up in bed while the whole castle was out for the day.

As I followed Harry and Ron into the Entrance Hall, it occurred to me. I could curl up in a ball and sleep the day away. All I had to do was use my time turner and I could still go to Hogsmeade later too! Harry was still sad about being left here all day, and Ron was trying to cheer him up, so neither of them noticed when I slipped around the corner and headed up to the common room.

It was quite lucky that I didn't run into anyone in the castle as I made my way to Gryffindor tower. This way I didn't have to worry about explaining why I wasn't on my way to Hogsmeade. Unfortunately, I ran into Ginny while I was on my way up to my dormitory.

"Hermione," Ginny exclaimed upon seeing me. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh, I just forgot my... scarf," I invented.

"Oh, okay," Ginny replied. "Do you want me to wait and walk down to the Entrance Hall with you? I was going to go to the library, so I'm heading in that direction."

"Oh, no, that's okay, you go on," I said, feeling as though my bed was calling to me from up the stairs.

"Oh, okay," Ginny said, sighing sadly, her shoulders sagging. I could see she was quite disappointed, and I groaned inwardly, knowing I couldn't just leave her there.

"You know what, sure, just let me grab my scarf," I said. As much as I wished I could just go to bed, I knew from the smile on Ginny's face that I had to do this first.

I grabbed my scarf from my trunk and followed Ginny out of the common room. While we made our way down the thousands of stairs I had just climbed, Ginny chattered away about her friends, and I tried to think of a way to sneak away before we reached the Entrance Hall. Just before we rounded the last corner, I caught sight of a familiar head hiding behind a suit of armour.

I froze, as did the person hiding, and our eyes locked on each other. It didn't take too long before I understood what I was meant to do. As Ginny described the antics of a girl from her Charms class, I began to walk slower so that I was behind her.

As inconspicuously as I could, I slipped sideways, behind the suit of armour, as the other slipped back into the corridor and caught up to Ginny as though nothing had happened. I waited until the two had rounded the corner before I came out and headed back in the direction I had just come, my heart pounding from the close call.

After climbing every last stair yet again, I finally tumbled into my bed, extremely out of breath. I just managed to set an alarm on my wand before falling into a deep and very restful sleep.

When my alarm woke me up, I felt amazing. I hadn't slept this well in months. As I rose, I noticed the late afternoon sun slanting through the windows, and I paused, taking a moment to look at it, glad that I could appreciate it now that I was rested. It was almost time for everyone to start arriving back from Hogsmeade, so I got ready quickly and slipped down and out of the common room, thankful that none of the older students who had already returned would recognize me.

I made my way down the stairs and found a deserted broom cupboard. Once I was inside, I pulled out my time turner and turned it back. When it was finished, I peeked out and saw that the corridor was empty. Grateful that I didn't have to wait for students to pass, I emerged and began to make my way to the Entrance Hall, where I would find Harry and Ron.

Halfway there, I halted abruptly in the middle of the hallway, causing a sixth year behind me to shake her head and roll her eyes. I had something else I had to do first, and I hoped I wasn't too late.

When I got there, I slipped behind the suit of armour and waited. Soon enough, as I had predicted, Ginny and my past self came down the corridor. Ginny didn't notice anything, but it seemed that my past self wasn't either. I stared and stared until finally my past self turned and our eyes locked. I remained as still as possible so as not to scare myself away.

My other self nodded and I ducked down, peering out through a gap in the armour. My former self lagged behind her companion and I tensed, but Ginny was lost in her storytelling, completely unaware that her audience had gone missing. She passed me in the next moment and I tiptoed out of hiding, knowing that my past self would trade places with me.

I caught up with Ginny easily, but I felt a little dizzy from conspiring with myself and I shook my head slightly to dislodge the strange train of thought. What had Ginny been talking about? It had been something about a Ravenclaw girl dancing around the Charms classroom, I recalled.

"Everybody called her Looney Lovegood, but I think that's mean," Ginny exuded. "Oh, you really must meet her, Hermione, she is the coolest, and the way she dresses, did I tell you about that?"

Just before we rounded the last corner, I turned around and saw myself still crouching behind the suit of armour. I made a note never to tell Professor McGonagall about this. Being seen by my past self was one of the things she had warned me about before letting me have the time turner.

"So, what do you think?" Ginny asked suddenly, looking over at me.

"About?" I asked, wishing I had been actually paying attention.

"Do you think there's such a thing as a Blibbering Humdinger?" Ginny repeated. "Because Luna says there is, but no one else believes her."

"Oh," I said. I thought back to the last time I read _Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them_. "I don't think so. She's probably just looking for attention."

As we continued walking, I saw Harry and Ron talking by the door, apparently unaware that I was even missing. Before, this would have made me angry, but I was feeling so good after my nap that I just waved it away.

"Well, bye Ginny," I said. "I guess I'll see you later."

"Okay, bye," Ginny replied, heading off towards the library.

I walked over to behind Harry and Ron and pretended like I had been there the whole time.


	43. A Good Day in Hogsmeade

Chapter 43: A Good Day in Hogsmeade

The walk to Hogsmeade was a long one. I was used to taking the school carriages to get from the train station to the school and I had never realized how far it actually was by foot. It was a nice walk, though, because with all the studying I had been doing recently, I hadn't had the chance to stretch my legs.

On the other hand, I also hadn't noticed how pretty everything was either. It was just starting to get colder, so the air was cold and the wind was sharp on our faces. The trees around us were swaying in the breeze, giving me the impression that they were dancing. Since it was morning again, the sun was high in the sky, and it reflected off the lake creating an almost blinding but dazzling effect.

By the end of the walk, my legs were tired and burned a bit in protest of the strain I was putting them through, but it felt so good to finally be using them again.

Hogsmeade was very different from Diagon Alley. Where Diagon Alley had been ridiculously packed and busy, I could imagine that if not for all the teenagers running around all over the place, Hogsmeade would be a quaint and slow-paced little village. It was somewhere I could see myself living at some point in the future.

Hogsmeade was the sort of village that I was sure my parents would have been much more comfortable with. I suddenly wished that this had been where we had come to buy my school things before my first year. Maybe then they wouldn't have been so overwhelmed by the wizarding world.

Suddenly, Ron interrupted my thoughts by dragged me into Honeydukes. Though Honeydukes was clearly an extremely popular store judging by the number of people crammed inside, I didn't really see the appeal. Candy had never been something I loved. As Ron gaped over the myriad displays, I looked around for something suitable to buy to bring back for Harry. I had, after all, promised to buy him some.

I wasn't sure what Harry would like best, so in the end, I got little samplings of almost everything. When Ron found me again in the back of the shop, his arms were full with chocolate.

"Hermione, you're getting all of that?" he asked in shock.

"Of course not," I said. "It's for Harry. Don't tell me you plan on buying all of _that_?" I asked, looking at his arms, which were even fuller than mine.

"Oh, come on Hermione, don't tell me you're not buying some for yourself too," Ron said, trying to rearrange his arms to make it look like he was carrying less than he really was.

"Actually, no, I'm not. Candy rots your teeth," I replied, heading to the counter with my pile of candy for Harry.

Ron followed me, his mouth wide and gaping. "You mean you're not getting _anything_ for yourself?" he asked.

"Nope," I replied. "It's not that big a deal Ron, really. I'd just rather spend my money on something more useful than candy."

"Well okay then," Ron said, looking at me as though I was crazy.

After I had paid for Harry's candy and Ron had paid for his, we agreed to try out a place called the Three Broomsticks. It was a restaurant, so we went up to the bar to order, but we weren't really sure what to get. We asked the witch who was working there, Madam Rosmerta, what she recommended, and we sat down at a table off to the side with our large bags of candy, a couple of sandwiches, and a mug of butterbeer each.

I was a little wary of the butterbeer at first. I took an experimental sniff, which caused Ron to start laughing at me.

"Come on Hermione, it's not poisoned!" he said, proving it by taking a sip of his own. "Woah, it's really good," he said, his eyes growing wide as he looked down at his mug.

I laughed and took a sip of my own drink. Ron was right, the butterbeer was amazing. Like its name would suggest, it tasted like liquid butter, except not in the disgusting way butter would taste if you just melted it and drank it. It was smooth, like milk, and very sweet, which led me to believe that it also had a lot of sugar in it. There was also some unidentifiable flavour present that really made it come together as the best thing I had ever drunk.

My second sip was more like a gulp, and since the Butterbeer was still really hot, I ended up burning my tongue. I cried out, and this caused Ron to laugh at me again.

Suddenly, Ron's eyes went very wide as he looked at something behind me. "Hermione, what is _that_?" he asked, pointing at something.

I turned around in my seat as inconspicuously as I could, but who or whatever it was that Ron was looking at had its back to me, so I couldn't see it.

"I don't know," I said, turning back around and shrugging at Ron.

"Looks like an ogre or something," Ron said, reaching into his bag of sweets from Honeydukes and starting to eat some fudge.

I rolled my eyes at him and continued to sip my butterbeer.

"Would you like to try a piece?" Ron asked, holding out a piece of the fudge to me. "You know, since you didn't buy any."

"Ron, candy rots your teeth," I said.

"So what? It tastes good!" Ron exclaimed.

"I think I'll pass," I replied.

"Just one bite," Ron said, shoving the fudge across the table.

"Alright, fine," I said, chuckling. I ate the fudge, which I had to admit, was pretty good despite the fact that I could feel the cavities forming. "Thanks, it was really good." I said when I had eaten it.

"Ready to go?" Ron said now that both our mugs and plates were empty.

I agreed and we left, heading to Zonko's Joke Shop on Ron's request. Ron spent a long time marvelling at all the displays and reminiscing about pranks that Fred and George had pulled on him in the past, now knowing where they got their materials. I had to persuade him not to spend the last of his money on ridiculous junk, because I knew he probably didn't have much left after Honeydukes and he probably wouldn't be getting anymore until Christmas.

After we left the joke shop, I convinced Ron to go into Dervish and Banges, the wizarding equipment shop. He didn't understand what was so exciting about it after a candy shop and a joke shop, but I loved it. In the end, Ron had to drag me out, and we went next door to the post office.

The post office was huge. It was one large room filled with hundreds of owls, all labelled for specific locations. Neither Ron nor I had any intention of sending a letter, and when the wizard who was working there realized this, he shooed us out.

Next, I saw a shop called Scrivenshaft's, which I begged Ron to let me enter. Just as we stepped foot inside, Ron announced that he was even more bored than at Dervish and Banges. I shushed him, looking over at the witch at the counter, but she wasn't paying attention, she was helping some other students.

I ended up purchasing some parchment and quills because they were so pretty. I would have spent a longer time looking around, but Ron kept complaining, so we left.

It was getting late, and we only had enough time to go into one more shop. I let Ron choose because I had chosen the last two, not including the post office. We ended up going into Spintwitches, a sporting goods shop, where Ron gazed longingly at all the products, probably because he wished he hadn't spent all of his money on candy. I was just as bored as Ron professed to have been in Scrivenshaft's, but I didn't say so out of politeness.

When Ron was finally done, we made our way back up to the castle. I couldn't believe how wonderful the day had turned out. I mentally checked for the headache I usually had at about this time of day, but it wasn't there.


	44. The Day Ron Weasley Stood Up For Me

Chapter 44: The Day Ron Weasley Stood Up For Me

When we arrived back at Hogwarts, Ron handed Harry all the candy I'd bought for him at Honeydukes, as he had offered to carry it back for me. He pretended like it was from the both of us, and I would have been annoyed at Ron for trying to share credit with me, but I was in such a good mood that I decided to let it go.

After dinner, we made our way back to the common room. I had eaten so much I felt like I wouldn't be able to climb all the stairs, but somehow, I managed. The delicious stew was the first meal I had properly enjoyed in a while. I decided not to think about all the work I would have to do tomorrow and let myself enjoy the remainder of the night.

When we reached the corridor that led to the portrait of the Fat Lady, we found it filled with students all craning to see what was going on up ahead. I tried to see over all the heads in front of me, but I was too short. I shrugged and waited while Harry and Ron continued to try to see.

Ron's older brother Percy arrived on the scene then, pushing his way through the crowd in an attempt to reach the front. Using his status as Head Boy, he was able to make it through, and then in a voice that caused a chill to run down my spine, he

I wrapped my arms around myself, suddenly feeling very cold and very worried. I didn't know what was going on, but his tone couple with the fact that bad things kept happening at Hogwarts told me that it couldn't be good.

It didn't take long for Professor Dumbledore to arrive, pushing his way through the crowd much more successfully than Percy had. When he had passed, I peered around the students and got a clear view of the portrait of the Fat Lady.

I gasped, shutting my eyes, and grabbed the closest thing, which happened to be Harry's arm. The Fat Lady was gone and the portrait appeared to have been slashed, probably with a knife, strips of the painting now lying on the floor. I felt my overly full stomach turn and my head start to spin. When did this happen? How did nobody see it happen? Why would somebody do it? None of it made any sense and I felt a desperate need for answers.

I opened my eyes and made a point not to look back in the direction of the portrait. Instead, I ended up looking toward Ron, whose eyes were focused on my hand still clasped around Harry's arm. I let go as inconspicuously as I could and turned my attention toward Professor Dumbledore.

Peeves had arrived and the Headmaster was prying him for information. For some reason Peeves was still making things difficult, even with Professor Dumbledore himself, but eventually he divulged what he knew.

When he mentioned Sirius Black, I felt my heart constrict and I grabbed Harry's arm again, this time not for my own protection but for his. If Black was in the castle, it meant he was here looking for Harry. I began to wonder how he could have gotten in. He couldn't just walk through the front doors. If he'd come by any magical means, Dumbledore would surely have detected it. And all the secret passages were being monitored by Filch and the dementors, I presumed.

In order for the teachers to conduct a proper search for Sirius Black, we were all sent to the Great Hall to sleep. Dumbledore conjured up a pile of sleeping bags for everyone and we spread out in the now furniture-free room.

I wished I had Crookshanks with me. He was probably up in my dorm missing me right now, and wondering why neither I nor any of my dormmates had come back for the night. It was weird not having him cuddled up against me, fighting for control of my pillow. I thought about asking for permission to go and get him, but knew that no professor was going to allow me into Gryffindor Tower tonight. Instead, I just tried to get as much sleep as I could, determined to give him extra love tomorrow.

Over the next few days, everyone was talking about how Sirius Black managed to get in and out of the castle unseen. However, even interest in that began to die down in favor of the upcoming quidditch match. I had hoped that after the nice reprieve I had had in Hogsmeade, my workload would become easier to handle, but I was wrong. It didn't take long before I was immersed in assignments and lies and exhaustion once again.

In fact, when I entered defence against the dark arts after lunch on Friday, it wasn't until Ron pointed it out that I realized it was Snape standing behind the desk and not Lupin. He informed us that Professor Lupin was sick and that he would be teaching the lesson that day.

I didn't mind that Professor Snape was our teacher like Harry and Ron did. What I minded was that I'd read up on Hinkypunks in preparation for today's lecture, and instead Professor Snape decided to teach us about werewolves. I'd had to use my time turner to have enough time to read the chapter thoroughly enough to be ready for this lecture, and it was all a waste now.

I was so frustrated that I had trouble remembering to restrain myself. After spending over two years in Professor Snape's potions classes, I'd learned to keep my thoughts to myself most of the time and not to attempt to answer too many questions in class, lest he make fun of me. But if Professor Snape was going to insist on quizzing the class on a topic they hadn't studied – and for good reason, werewolves weren't even on the curriculum this year – I wasn't going to sit by and stay silent.

So, when he asked us how to identify a werewolf from a regular wolf and ignored my raised hand, I lost my patience and called out the answer without being called upon.

Professor Snape was not impressed. He took five points from me for speaking out of turn. I could feel the entire class staring at me from behind. I knew they all thought I was a know-it-all, just like he'd said. I just wanted to disappear.

I lowered my traitorous hand that I was always waving around in the air and slid as low as I could in my chair. I silently vowed to never raise my hand again. I could feel the heat of embarrassment filling my cheeks and the tears of humiliation threatening to fall from my eyes, and I looked towards the floor, wishing for the safety of Harry's invisibility cloak.

It wasn't fair. I knew the answers, so why wouldn't Professor Snape let me say so, especially when it was clear nobody else had the answer. I had no problem letting other people answer questions sometimes, but he'd been acting like we were all a bunch of idiots, and after weeks of endless work and exhaustion making sure that I was keeping up with all my classes, I just couldn't let him pretend like I was stupid.

I was waiting for it. I was expecting the class to burst into laughter and start point at me and mocking me just like I knew they always wanted to. Instead, Ron straightened in his seat next to me and opened his mouth.

In an angry voice, he was almost yelling as he told Professor Snape off. My heart soared as I listened to him defend me and my eyes watered at the thought that he was willing to stand up to our scariest teacher for me.

Ron was immediately given a detention, but he didn't even seem to care. The tension in the classroom was tangible. Everybody was terrified of making even the slightest sound for fear of more detentions being handed out. When Snape turned and walked back to his desk to assign us our work, I turned to look at Ron. He had never gotten so mad at a teacher like that, and I couldn't remember him ever going out of his way to defend me before. He refused to make eye contact with me, so instead I focused on the notes I was supposed to be making on werewolves as I silently smiled to myself.

I waited until the end of our last class, when Harry went off to quidditch practice, to bring up the events of our defence against the dark arts class.

"I wanted to say thank you," I said to him as we made our way to the common room. "You didn't have to do that."

Looking straight ahead, Ron shrugged. "Snape gets away with too much around here. Besides, he's always picking on you for being smart and it's not fair. You work really hard to know everything."

"I do," I agreed. "But I feel bad. Now you have to scrub bedpans because of me."

"I knew what I was doing," Ron replied. "Besides, you're my friend. I couldn't just sit there and do nothing."

I felt a small flutter and smiled at him. It was nice having people who cared enough to look out for me. Ron had had my back today. I knew I could count on him to protect me if I needed it, and it was a good feeling.

"Do you want me to look over your potions essay tonight?" I asked. The essay in question was due tomorrow, and when Ron had asked me to look it over the previous day, I'd told him I didn't have the time.

"Are you sure?" Ron asked. "I know you have a lot to do, and now we have that werewolf essay on top of it all."

"I'll make the time," I told him.

I felt like I had to do something in return for him. He was going to spend the evening scrubbing bedpans, the least I could do was read over his essay while he did so. If I had to repeat an hour later, then so be it. I'd find the time to sleep it off some other time.


	45. The Quidditch Match

Chapter 45: The Quidditch Match

The night before Gryffindor's first quidditch game, I had to go back in time twice just to get a third of my homework finished. I had to use Professor McGonagall's empty classroom again to study. When she came in, she seemed a little concerned.

"Miss Granger, you haven't had to use my classroom recently, I thought you had your work under control," she said upon discovering me. "It's not healthy to go back in time too much, as you very well know."

"Don't worry Professor; I'm just avoiding my friends. They keep trying to get me to help them, so I thought I'd get more work done here," I lied.

"Alright, well be sure to get back to your common room before curfew," Professor McGonagall replied before going into her office to get some papers and then leaving. I hated lying to my teacher, but it was better than telling her the truth and possibly having my time turner taken away.

I knew she didn't like how much I was using it. She'd told me that it was safer the less I used it, and that I should only use it for classes when it was absolutely necessary, and the occasional circumstance when I needed an extra hour or two for my homework. But my schoolwork was too important for me to stop or slow down.

When I awoke the morning of the quidditch match to the loud squealing of Parvati and Lavender, I was not in a good mood. My mood only worsened when I looked out the window to find that it was storming. Not only was I going to be wasting a couple of hours watching the quidditch game, I was probably going to get sick too.

I decided I wanted to postpone having to go outside as long as possible, so instead of getting breakfast in the Great Hall, I went straight to the empty library. I settled myself in my favorite chair and spread out my homework for ancient runes.

I was stationed near a window, so when the students began pouring out of the school and heading toward the quidditch pitch, I could see them clearly. It was so miserable outside that I felt bad for them all, until I remembered that I was probably out there too, because I would be repeating this hour later.

I returned my focus to my work, and was almost finished translating the passage we had been assigned when someone startled me by sitting down next to me. I turned to see who it was, and I was shocked to find that it was Lisa Turpin. We hadn't spoken since the Hogwarts Express on our way to Hogwarts in our first year.

"Hi Lisa," I said uncertainly. "Why aren't you down at the quidditch match?"

I went down for a little while, but the rain became too much," she replied. "My glasses got so fogged up, I could barely see Sue sitting next to me, let alone the match itself."

"Oh," I replied. "That's too bad."

"What about you? I thought I saw you down at the match," Lisa said.

I panicked for a moment, but then decided to pretend like I didn't know what she was talking about. "I've been here all day. You probably mistook someone else for me," I said.

"Didn't you cast a spell on Harry Potter's glasses partway through the game?" Lisa frowned.

I mentally berated myself for being so thoughtless. I couldn't decide whether I was more upset with my present self for not coming up with a better excuse than mistaking me for someone else, or my future self for not remembering this conversation and making myself less visible. Then again, if I'd hidden from Lisa, this conversation wouldn't have happened and I wouldn't have known to hide later at the game. I raised a hand to my head, overwhelmed by the complexity of time turning.

"I could barely see anyway," Lisa said then, getting up to leave. "It was probably someone else. I'll see you around."

When Lisa had gone, I returned to my translating, trying to figure out what had just happened. I couldn't decide whether she really believed I hadn't been down at the pitch, or whether she'd just left upon seeing my distress. She probably thought I was lying to her about being at the game and I sighed, wishing things didn't have to be so complicated. But I had to go to the quidditch game. Harry would never forgive me if I missed it.

When I saw that the school was returning from the quidditch pitch, I packed up my things quickly and ran for the nearest bathroom. I slipped into a cubicle and turned my time turner back to before breakfast; I was _starving_.

When I arrived, Harry was staring sullenly at his plate and Ron was eating like a pig as usual. Thankfully, neither was talking, so I didn't have to make an effort to pay attention to them. Instead, I tried to think of spells I might be able to use to keep myself dry and warm.

By the time we were heading down, all I could think of was the water repelling charm, which I did use on myself. Unfortunately, I was still as cold as everyone else.

The quidditch game began and I discovered that with the rain and wind, it was impossible to almost fall asleep in the stands, despite how tired I was. On the other hand, I couldn't see anything that was going on, so I just sat there in the freezing cold, wishing I was back in the comfort of the library.

I remembered that Lisa had mentioned something about me casting a spell on Harry's glasses and tried to figure out what it could be. It wasn't until Ron made a comment about how difficult Harry's visibility would be in the rain with fogged up and rain-spattered glasses that I realized I could use the water-repelling charm on the glasses just like I'd used it on myself.

A surge of energy ran through me then. I don't know where the energy came from, maybe from the idea that if I could help Harry to see he would catch the snitch sooner and we could all go back into the warmth of the castle and eat some hot soup. I watched for an opportunity to cast the spell on Harry, but he never flew close enough to be in the range of the spell.

Finally, Oliver Wood, the Gryffindor team captain, called a time out, and I saw my chance. I pushed my way through the crowd in an attempt to reach the bottom of the pitch where the Gryffindor team was huddled.

"Don't shove me!" a voice said, disgruntled.

I turned and found myself face to face with Lisa Turpin.

"Crap," I muttered, spinning around before she could see me fully and hurrying down to Harry. I desperately hoped this didn't turn into anything bad. Professor McGonagall had been very clear about making sure that I wasn't seen to be in two places at once. But most likely, Lisa would just think I was a jerk, not that I was involved in time magic. Still, it wasn't ideal.

I got to Harry and took his glasses, casting the Impervius charm on them just as I had done on myself earlier. I would have done it on all of him, but he was already soaked, so I didn't see a point. When I got back to my spot in the stands, I tried to see if I could locate Harry in the sky, but the rain was still so bad that the players were almost impossible to make out.

The game went on for a while longer, and it only became more and more miserable. I noticed that Lisa Turpin was gone and sighed sadly to myself, knowing that my past self was having a conversation with her now that would confuse her and make her think I was a liar.

Suddenly, I felt an inexplicable wave of despair wash over me. Moments ago, I'd been lamenting my situation with Lisa, but now it felt like it was the end of the world, that I would never be able to win back her trust, and that my life was ruined because of it. Looking up, I saw that the Quidditch pitch was cloaked in black. It was dementors, dozens of them. In the back of my mind, I knew that they were the reason I was overreacting about Lisa, but as long as they were there, I couldn't let the feelings go.

I was about to sit down because I was feeling overwhelmed with misery and exhaustion, but then I remembered Harry fainting on the train, and I remembered that he was currently flying on a broom, and he was probably very far from the ground.

"Where's Harry?" I cried frantically to Ron, but he was staring unseeingly in front of him with his arms wrapped around his body.

There was nothing I could do. I barely had the strength to keep standing, let alone to get out my wand and think of a spell. All I could do was watch in horror as a body I could only assume was Harry's plummeted headfirst towards the ground while dementors swarmed around him.

If it weren't for Professor Dumbledore stepping in at that moment, it would have been disastrous. First, he slowed Harry down enough so that he wasn't hurt when he hit the ground. Then he did a spell that made a dazzlingly bright light fill the Quidditch pitch. I had to shield my eyes it was so bright, and when I could look again, the dementors were gone.

When I looked back, he had conjured a stretcher for Harry and was taking it up to the school. Ron grabbed onto the sleeve of my robe and pulled me out of the stands. We made it all the way to the hospital wing, but weren't allowed in until Madam Pomfrey did a full examination.

While we waited, I sat down on the stairs nearby and leaned my head against the wall. I had been in shock this whole time, and suddenly, I felt a wave of emotion come over me and I began to cry.

I didn't care that Ron was standing right there. I didn't care when the rest of Harry's team arrived and saw me. I didn't even care when Professor Dumbledore came out of the hospital wing and stormed off to his office. When Madam Pomfrey finally opened the doors and told us we could enter, I wiped away my tears and followed everyone in.

Harry was asleep in the bed, and other than looking very pale, he seemed fine. When Madam Pomfrey assured us that Harry would be okay, Oliver Wood left, saying he needed to shower and be alone.

Suddenly, Professor Flitwick came in with a large bundle in his arms.

"Professor, what's that?" asked Alicia Spinnet.

"It seems that Mr. Potter's broom flew into the whomping willow when he fell to the ground," Professor Flitwick said, unwrapping the bundle to show us all the mess of twigs inside. "I wasn't sure if Mr. Potter would still like to keep it or...?"

"We'll take it," Ron said. Professor Flitwick passed it over and Ron placed it under Harry's bed so he wouldn't see it right away when he woke up.

"Alright, I'll leave it to you then, Weasley," Professor Flitwick replied as he turned to leave again.

Just then, Harry started to stir, and finally, he opened his eyes. He immediately wanted to know what had happened, so the team explained how the game went. I hadn't even realized that I didn't know which team had won until now.

When the team left, Ron and I moved up to sit on either side of Harry's bed. Of course, he asked about his broom, which I had been hoping he wouldn't ask until he was feeling better. When we showed it to him, he looked like someone had just died, which I suppose it had; his broom was his friend in a way.

I spent the rest of my day by Harry's bedside like a good friend. When dinner came, I snuck away and repeated the afternoon so that I didn't get behind on my homework. I ended up having to work in Professor McGonagall's classroom again because all over the castle, everyone kept interrupting me to ask how Harry was and why I wasn't with him.

It was a very long and emotionally draining day. When I finally headed up to my dormitory to sleep, I was unconscious within seconds of my head hitting the pillow.


	46. Werewolves

Chapter 46: Werewolves

I was in the library. One of my past selves was in the common room giving Harry and Ron a quick recap of our most recent history of magic lecture which they'd slept through. Normally I wouldn't have done it, but Harry was still a little out of it from his quidditch accident and I felt bad for him.

Meanwhile, I had tons of homework to complete, including the blasted werewolf essay that Professor Snape had set which had just thrown my entire schedule out of whack. I decided to get that out of the way quickly, so that I could focus on more important things.

The topic of the essay was ways to recognize and kill a werewolf. It was pretty easy once I got going, and most of the information was written right there in my textbook. I was relieved that I wasn't going to have to do any additional research, because I really didn't have the time for it.

I started the essay by talking about how to recognize a werewolf in it's wolf form, then moved on to recognizing one in it's human form, and ended with methods for killing one if necessary.

_The werewolf, or lycanthrope, is a human infected with a condition known as lycanthropy. This condition must be passed on through the bloodstream and it most typically transferred through the process of biting. Once infected, a werewolf becomes a slave to the moon, and once a month when the moon is full, the werewolf loses control of his or her body and is forced to transform into the form of the beast. _

_While in its bestial form, werewolves look very similar to regular wolves except for some notable differences. Werewolves have shorter snouts and tufted tails, and also retain their human eyes. If one were to get up close to a werewolf, these physical characteristics would surely be tell-tale signs that they were faced with no ordinary wolf. However, if someone were to get this close to a werewolf, the wolf would likely bite them, thus making physical identification pointless. The most common way of identifying a werewolf from a normal wolf is by its behaviour. Regular wolves fear and avoid human beings, only attacking when threatened. Werewolves seek humans out while under the control of the full moon, hunting them for sport and aiming to bite as many as they come across. Finally, if someone were to come across a wolf-like creature in an environment where wolves are not typically found, it would be reasonable to assume that it was a werewolf and not a regular wolf. However, it would be advisable to confirm via behavioural or physical identifiers before coming to a conclusion._

_In their human forms, werewolves are much more difficult to distinguish from other humans. When a werewolf is in its human form, he or she retains all the same physical characteristics as before he or she was inflicted with the condition. There a couple of physical indications that one could use to identify a werewolf in human form. Due to the monthly transformations taking a toll on the body, werewolves age quicker than other humans, and they will also grow paler when the full moon is near, as their body anticipates the coming transformation. However, these are not foolproof indications of a werewolf and should never be used alone to identify one. Apart from keeping track of a person's activities during full moons and keeping careful track of the lunar cycle, it is very difficult to identify a werewolf in its human form. _

_Killing a werewolf in its wolf form is possible, but it is dangerous as it is inadvisable to get too close to one at the risk of being bitten. There is no specifically magical way to kill a werewolf, though a killing curse would be effective as with all living things. To kill a werewolf, one should be strong and fast, as the werewolf has enhanced speed and strength, and its hide is thick, making it difficult to pierce. While in human form, a werewolf would be as easy to kill as any other human, having none of the protections of its bestial form. However, as a part of the Werewolf Code of Conduct, legalized in 1637, in exchange for werewolves agreeing to lock themselves up during the full moon and not to attack humans while in their wolf form, it was made illegal to kill werewolves while in their human forms._

_In conclusion, werewolves are most easily identifiable in their wolf form, and are almost indistinguishable from other humans while in their human form. While werewolves cannot be legally killed while in their human forms, they can be killed in their wolf forms if they are endangering other humans, but it is inadvisable to do so. The safest way to deal with a werewolf in its wolf form would be to run and hide, as their speed, strength, and enhanced senses make them extremely difficult, though not impossible to kill._

As I wrapped up my essay, I thought it was a little short, and wondered if I should add anything else to it. Professor Snape had asked for two rolls of parchment, which I had filled, but I felt like it needed something more. Then again, I had a lot of work to do and hadn't even started my muggle studies essay, which was due first thing in the morning.

I was about to close my textbook when I came across a paragraph I hadn't read before. I frowned, wondering how I could have missed it, and began to read.

_As discussed, werewolves change at every full moon. However, this can be a rather painful process, creating a sense of fear in those that must change. For this reason, werewolves are most afraid of the moon. Furthermore, when faced with a boggart, it will turn into a full moon. If left undealt with, the boggart will cause an unscheduled change in the werewolf from man to wolf which will last until the boggart is dispelled._

Next to the paragraph, there was a picture of a werewolf staring at a full moon that was hovering in the middle of a room. The caption indicated that it was in fact a Boggart. Upon examining the picture further, I found that I had a vague memory of having seen something similar before. It nagged at the back of my head as I quickly scribbled an extra paragraph into my essay about boggarts and how it could be used as another way to identify a werewolf in their human form.

Just as I was rolling up my essay and stowing it in my bag, I realized where I'd seen the image before. It had been in Professor Lupin's class on boggarts. Just when Harry had been about to go, Professor Lupin had stepped in front of him and the boggart had turned into what we'd all assumed at the time was a crystal ball. But it hadn't been a crystal ball. It had been the full moon.

But Professor Lupin couldn't be a werewolf. If he was, he'd have to leave the school once a month to transform, because there was no way he could undergo his transformation on the Hogwarts' grounds, so close to so many students, and not have been detected. But then I remembered that he had been absent last week. Professor Snape had said he was ill, but what if it was more than that?

Frantically, I grabbed my astronomy things from my bag and consulted a lunar chart. Technically it had just been the full moon. If Professor Lupin wasn't a werewolf, he'd come down with the flu at a vey suspicious time. I felt my heartrate pick up as my mind ran through everything I knew about werewolves. They aged faster once they were infected, but that wasn't something I could judge Professor Lupin on, because I didn't know how old he was. I also knew that werewolves got paler when the full moon was coming, but I didn't spend enough time with the defence professor to know whether he'd been pale recently. What I did know was that he'd been absent during the full moon, and his boggart was a moon. And those were two pretty strong facts.

But Professor Dumbledore wouldn't hire a werewolf to teach students. According to my textbook and Professor Snape's lecture, werewolves were dangerous and couldn't be trusted. The Werewolf Code of Conduct had been created to reduce the dangers posed by werewolves to society by giving them incentive not to infect others with their condition. But that didn't mean they should be trusted to be around so many underage witches and wizards all the time.

My first thought was that I had to report this to a teacher. If there was a werewolf in the school, the teachers had to be notified so that they could ensure our safety. Then I realized that of course, the staff must already know. If not the entire staff, then Professor Dumbledore must know already for sure. He wasn't stupid enough to be fooled, and if I'd figured it out, then surely, he had. That meant that Professor Dumbledore hired Professor Lupin in full awareness of his condition.

There were now two possibilities I could see. Either Professor Lupin was dangerous like the textbooks said and Professor Dumbledore had exercised bad judgement in hiring him, or Professor Dumbledore fully trusted him and had precautions in place to protect the students.

Professor Lupin had been living in the castle with hundreds of students for about three months now. If he were a threat, something would have happened already. And Professor Dumbledore was perhaps the wisest wizard alive. He wouldn't have hired Professor Lupin without being sure that it would be completely safe to do so.

I finally came to the conclusion that there was nothing for me to do. There was no point telling Professor McGonagall or Professor Dumbledore, because they should already know. I didn't see a reason why I should tell Professor Lupin I knew; if he hadn't told us yet, he probably didn't want us to know. I considered telling Harry and Ron, but that would be an invasion of the professor's privacy. There really was no reason to tell anyone since I fully trusted that Professor Lupin was completely safe to be around.

Suddenly, it occurred to me how coincidental it was that Professor Snape would choose werewolves out of all the creatures in the curriculum to cover and that he assigned an essay emphasizing how to recognize them. Did he know that Professor Lupin was a werewolf? Did he hope a student would figure it out and denounce Professor Lupin? Why not just tell us? Had he been sworn to secrecy and thought better of it? I swayed as I tried to ponder Professor Snape's snaky mind.

Since I was ridiculously tired, I decided that figuring out Professor Snape's motives for teaching us about werewolves was not a priority. Instead of puzzling over it like I normally would, I gathered my muggle studies notes and began working on my next assignment. There would be time one day to worry about this, but right now I had too much to do.


	47. Breaking Point

Chapter 47: Breaking Point

The next day, I discovered that all my work had been for nothing. Now that Professor Lupin was back in charge of his class, he informed us that we didn't have to write the werewolf essay and that he would talk to Professor Snape about assigning homework he hadn't requested.

I was immediately frustrated with myself. If I'd only left it for another day, I could have avoided having to do it all together and wouldn't have had to go back in time for as long. I could have been better rested today, or gotten more of my other work done instead.

If there was anything I hated more than wasting time, it was doing homework for no reason. More than anything else, I hated that I'd put effort into an essay that nobody was going to read. I figured I could hand it in to Professor Lupin, but then thought better of it. He hadn't set the essay and likely wouldn't read it.

Professor Snape however, had set the essay, and was likely going to be unhappy when Professor Lupin told him he'd unassigned it. If I handed my essay in now, perhaps I could ingratiate myself to my potions Professor just a little bit. He didn't like me, but maybe if I was the only student to do his essay, he would be a little less harsh and stop taking points from me for no reason.

So, when the day came to an end, Harry and Ron headed up to the common room and I made my way down to the dungeons to seek out Professor Snape. Maybe he'd even give me extra credit, I thought, as I headed towards his office.

When I arrived at the office door, I could hear voices on the other side and I didn't want to interrupt. I meant to leave and come back after dinner, but when I realized who was inside, I paused.

"You had no right to assign that essay, it was completely inappropriate," Professor Lupin said angrily.

"If you had been there, you could have assigned your own essay, but as I had to fill in for you, I chose an assignment that I deemed appropriate," Professor Snape replied.

"Werewolves aren't even in the curriculum for third years," Professor Lupin said.

"Indeed. However, I believe that begs the question, why?" Professor Snape said. "I believe you and I learned about werewolves in our second year."

"Exactly," Professor Lupin cried. "It's not in the third-year curriculum!"

"Neither are grindylows, red caps, hinkypunks, or any of the creatures you are teaching about," Professor Snape replied.

"Yes, well, they were supposed to study those creatures last year, but they didn't," Professor Lupin said.

"They also never studied werewolves," Professor Snape said.

"That's not the point," Professor Lupin said. "I made it very clear in the lesson plan I left for you that I wanted them to learn about hinkypunks. Imagine my surprise when they came in this afternoon and couldn't identify the hinkypunk on my desk."

"To what lesson plan are you referring?" Professor Snape asked. "I found no such document. It was perfectly within my authority as the teacher in the classroom to teach what I chose within the curriculum and to assign an essay corresponding to the lesson."

"Look, Severus, Professor Dumbledore doesn't think the students should know, and assigning that essay is only going to give them an opportunity to figure it out," Professor Lupin said.

"I believe what Professor Dumbledore said was not to _tell_ them, and I did no such thing. If the students _happen_ to figure it out while pursuing their studies, you can hardly blame me for it," Professor Snape replied.

I heard movement then, and realized that I should probably leave before someone opened the door and found me eavesdropping. I slipped out of the classroom and silently as I could and then ran upstairs towards Gryffindor Tower.

It seemed that Professor Snape wanted everyone to know Professor Lupin was a werewolf, but Professor Lupin didn't want anyone to find out. Again, I wondered what interest Professor Snape could have with Professor Lupin's condition being known, but I realized that I was wasting time pondering it when I could be doing another essay.

I spent a few hours in the common room, working next to Harry and Ron, who were playing a game of chess with each other and annoying me by asking if I wanted to join in. I couldn't join in, I had too much to do. Ron whined about how I was always working and how I was more fun to play in chess than Harry and I bit back a retort, keeping in mind that I didn't want to start an argument.

After dinner, I turned back time and headed to the library to research flobberworms. Unfortunately, I didn't accomplish much. Flobberworms aren't very popular, so most textbooks don't have much to say about them. I desperately tried to find something interesting to say about them for the essay Hagrid set, but ended up settling for talking about how cute they are, hoping that he would appreciate my take on the essay. He hadn't actually given a specific topic, after all.

When the library closed, I used my time turner to return to just after dinner and this time I headed to the common room again to work on ancient runes. When I finished that, I got to work on potions, but it was very early in the morning, and I was worried that someone might wake up early and come down to find me. I still wanted to study divination though, so I used my time turner again and made my way to Professor McGonagall's classroom.

Thankfully, she wasn't there when I arrived. I took my divination book out of my bag and sat down at a desk with it and began to try to figure out how to distinguish the bunch of gunk in the bottom of a tea cup.

I felt my eyelids getting heavier, but every time they began to droop, I shook myself back awake. I knew I needed to sleep soon, but I was determined to keep going until curfew. The next time my eyes drooped shut, I found myself falling forward unintentionally until my head landed on the desk, causing me to jump and shake myself awake again.

I turned the page in my textbook, and the picture on the page was of a beautiful, big and extremely comfortable looking armchair. I imagined I was sitting in it, and I could feel the cushions behind my back. My eyelids became even harder to keep up and my head was now drooping in front of me a little, because holding it up took too much effort.

I reached the end of the page and I tried to lift my arm to turn the page, but it didn't move. I had to concentrate on my arm to lift it and I felt like I was lifting a hundred-pound weight. When the page was turned, my arm fell back to the table with a thud and my eyelids dropped again. I told myself I would open them again in ten seconds and began to count to myself to make sure I did.

One...two...three...four...

"Ms. Granger!" Professor McGonagall cried, jerking me back to reality. I was still in the transfiguration classroom, and my divination textbook was on the desk in front of me. My head was resting on the book and my arms had curled to create a makeshift pillow for myself.

"Sorry Professor, I was just taking a minute to rest," I said, sitting up straight again and pretending to go back to reading my book. I couldn't remember any of what I had read, and I had to flip back four pages before I found something that I could remember.

"Ms. Granger, it is two o'clock in the morning, how long have you been here?" Professor McGonagall asked.

"Two o'clock?" I asked, shocked. It had been around eight when I fell asleep. "I'm sorry Professor, I've just had a bit of a long day, I didn't mean to fall asleep here," I said.

"Ms. Granger, how much are you using that time turner?" Professor McGonagall asked.

"Not that much," I said. "I didn't even use it tonight; I'm just tired because I had an emotionally draining weekend." I figured Harry being in the hospital counted towards emotionally draining, even if he was perfectly fine.

"May I see your time turner?" Professor McGonagall asked.

I nodded, and took it from my neck, handing it to her, confused.

"_Tempus revelio_" Professor McGonagall said, pointing her wand at the time turner. A series of puffs of smoke were emitted from the object in different colors for a couple of minutes until it was finally finished and Professor McGonagall set it down on the desk, looking at me with her eyes wide.

"Ms. Granger," she said slowly. "I will ask you again. How often have you been using the time turner?"

I figured the spell she had just done had shown her in some fashion how much I had been using it. I decided I had better tell the truth because she would find out anyway.

"Other than for class, I use it two or three times every day," I replied.

"Two or three times every day?" Professor McGonagall asked. "And how many extra hours does each of your days have in them, would you say?"

I thought for a minute. "Probably between twelve and sixteen," I said honestly.

"Ms. Granger!" Professor McGonagall exclaimed. "Do you realize how dangerous that is? I thought you could handle having the time turner. I thought you were managing your classes, but clearly you aren't. I am very disappointed. I told you to come see me if it became too much to handle."

"But I am handling it!" I said.

"I'm sorry Ms. Granger, but you are putting your very life in jeopardy. I'm afraid I will have to take away your time turner, you are obviously not mature enough to handle it."

I blanched. She couldn't do this to me. I was so tired and so ashamed and so desperate to keep the time turner that I didn't know what to do, and I watched, aghast, as my time turner was taken away and placed in the top drawer of Professor McGonagall's desk.


	48. Compromise

Chapter 48: Compromise

I watched, aghast, as my time turner was taken away and placed in the top drawer of Professor McGonagall's desk.

"Professor, you can't do this, there must be something I can do to keep the time turner," I said, pleading.

"Ms. Granger, I don't think you understand how serious this really is. By your own confession, you have been living days twelve to sixteen hours longer than the rest of us. In theory, you have lived at least an extra month and a half in the past three months. Since I assume you are only sleeping once each night, that means your body has lived through an extra month and a half without any extra sleep time to compensate for it. I've been healing you of the exhaustion effects for your class hours, but all the rest of the time you've repeated has stayed with you. The only reason you're still functioning is that you didn't go a full month and a half without sleep, but it will catch up with you faster than you think," Professor McGonagall said.

I felt lightheaded. My thoughts began swirling. I was so overwhelmed and distraught that I couldn't think straight anymore. I just wanted to lie down for a minute to rest so that I could deal with this. Maybe if I closed my eyes for a second, I could gather my thoughts. But once I closed them, they wouldn't open. I was disoriented. I felt air rushing past me, and I felt a little dizzy and then everything went black.

"Ms. Granger! Ms. Granger! Get up! Get up!" I heard a voice saying.

My head hurt and I felt my arm squashed under my body at an odd angle. I couldn't remember how I got on the ground. I finally forced my eyes open to find myself in the transfiguration classroom with Professor McGonagall standing over me with a concerned expression on her face.

My situation rushed back to me. My time turner had been taken away. I was lacking a lot of sleep. Then I must've passed out or something.

"See Ms. Granger," Professor McGonagall said as she helped me up and sat me in a chair. "Skipping out on too much sleep can be very dangerous. Imagine if you had been flying when that happened."

I understood the professor's point. Obviously, I really needed to sleep. I suddenly realized that even though my head was telling me I needed to sleep, I actually no longer felt tired at all. In fact, I felt like I could run a marathon.

"Professor, I'm not tired anymore," I said, trying to figure out how that could be. I couldn't have been unconscious for that long, so how could I feel this refreshed already?

"Of course not," Professor McGonagall snapped irritably. "I performed a complex charm on you to relieve you of the majority of your exhaustion. Otherwise, you would have needed to sleep until Christmas."

I began to consider this charm. She'd been casting it on me every week, to counter the exhaustive effects of using the time turner for classes, and now she'd used it to take away a month and a half's worth of tiredness in one go. If I learned the spell, I could rid myself of my tiredness, and I could continue to use my time turner as I had been while using this charm on myself so that I didn't end up in this situation again.

Professor McGonagall must've been able to read the thoughts on my face, because before I could say anything, she spoke.

"Absolutely not. Ms. Granger, you cannot rely on a charm to keep you healthy. Sleep is vital and without it, even with this charm, you could still do a large amount of damage to your body."

I sighed. "But Professor, if you just taught me the charm, I would promise to use it responsibly and I would only use the time turner when it's absolutely necessary," I said.

"Unfortunately, you have already lied to me once, and evidently I can't trust you to act sensibly," Professor McGonagall said.

"But Professor, my classes," I said, desperate now. "I can't just drop them. I've already started. It would be unfair to my teachers." At this, Professor McGonagall paused. I took this as encouragement and kept going. "You can even start checking my time turner at the end of each week if you want, to see how often I've been going back in tim."

I waited expectantly while Professor McGonagall deliberated. "Ms. Granger, what exactly is it that you do during all this extra time you keep acquiring?" she asked.

"My homework," I said, confused.

"And Ms. Granger, if you are given an hour to write a test, would it be okay for you to use the time turner to give yourself two hours?" Professor McGonagall asked.

"Of course not," I said. "That would be cheating!"

"Then how is it okay to do the same with your homework? How is it fair to the other students to give yourself more time than they have? If I give my students two days to write an essay, it is because I want my students to write the essay in two days," Professor McGonagall said.

I bowed my head. She was right. I was cheating and I should feel ashamed. I shouldn't be using my heavy workload as an excuse, I'd chosen to take this many classes.

"Ms. Granger, I've read your essays. Without fail, every homework assignment you have submitted to me has been beyond excellent. You surpass all expectations, your writing shows evidence of extensive research into every topic, and you have your textbooks memorized," Professor McGonagall said.

I felt a surge of pride, followed by embarrassment for feeling proud while being reprimanded.

"As wonderful as your work is, if it costs you all this time, it really is unnecessary," she continued. "I more than anyone understand how important it must seem to hand in near perfect work. You've set a standard for yourself, and you feel as though failing to meet that standard would bring disgrace upon you."

I looked up, amazed that Professor McGonagall could really understand all of this. She had described my feelings almost perfectly. "How do you know all that?" I asked.

"There was a time, Ms. Granger, when I was young, that I was in a very similar situation to yours. My first two years at Hogwarts, I excelled in my classes. I never let myself get less than eighty percent on anything. Marks lower than that made me sick. Marks below ninety percent even made me feel uncomfortable. I never felt proud of myself unless I scored a one hundred. Receiving an _acceptable_ would have been unacceptable."

I felt captivated by the Professor's story. It was almost like she was inside my head.

"In my third year, I added all six elective courses to my schedule. At the time alchemy was also an option. I was issued a time turner from the Ministry of Magic just as you were. It became more difficult for me to keep up with all my work. I was losing sleep, repeating hours to manage all my homework. I stopped eating so that I wouldn't have to waste time in the Great Hall. I lost a lot of weight, I became irritable, and I eventually became estranged from my friends. By Christmas, I had almost completely destroyed myself, but I didn't even realize it."

"Over Christmas, I rested and caught up on lots of sleep. I thought I was fine. It seemed as though I was back to normal. When classes started again, I fell back into my routine. It took even less time than before to become exhausted again. Finally, on my way to the library one day, I fainted in the hallway and ended up in the hospital wing."

"I ended up missing almost three weeks of classes while the matron at the time, Madame Pilgreen, forced me to drink potion after potion to bring me back to full health. Though I longed to return to the main castle and my courses, she insisted on keeping me under observation. Just before she released me, the Headmaster at the time, Armando Dippet, paid me a visit and removed my time turner from my possession. I was automatically de-registered from three of my elective courses of the Headmaster's choosing and I returned to the castle, humiliated and ashamed."

"So, you see Ms. Granger, I understand your situation better than anyone. However, since I have already experienced this, I understand better than you the consequences of what you are doing, and I care enough about you to stop this now before you end up in the hospital," Professor McGonagall said.

I felt a warmth fill me when she said this and I smiled. "Thank you," I said.

Professor McGonagall looked at me for a moment and then I saw a tiny smile grace her lips for a fleeting moment.

"However, we still have to address your situation," Professor McGonagall said. I bit my lip and waited.

"I cannot condone your use of the time turner to have extra time for your assignments. I will be speaking to your other teachers, and though they each reserve the right to make the final decision for their own class, I think it is safe to say your current course mark will be docked about ten percent in each class," she said. I grimaced, though I knew this was fair, so I didn't argue.

"As for your time turner... I will make you a deal," she said, surprising me and causing me to silently rejoice on the inside. "You may have the time turner back, but you will come and see me in my office every Friday as you have been, and I will personally verify the time turner to make sure you are using it responsibly. At the end of the school year, you will choose two non-mandatory courses that you do not wish to pursue in your next four years of education at this school and you will drop them. You will return the time turner to me and I will return it to the Ministry of Magic."

I frowned. She was going to make me drop classes anyway. Even though I really didn't like the arrangement, I agreed. At least I could continue my classes for now, and maybe with the extra time, I could come up with a case for her to let me keep the time turner next year.

Professor McGonagall opened her desk drawer and gingerly picked up the time turner. When I reached for it, I found that her grip on it was quite tight. With reluctance in her eyes, she released it and I hung it back around my neck, feeling much better now that it was back where it belonged.

"And Ms. Granger," she said as I was turning to leave. "If you find you are having trouble or need help or advice, please come and see me."

"Thank you, Professor," I said. Though I knew I'd let Professor McGonagall down today, and that I'd also completely destroyed her trust in me, it was still comforting to know that someone understood what I was going through.


	49. End of Term

Chapter 49: End of Term

The next couple of weeks were very strained. I couldn't use my time turner except for classes, or else Professor McGonagall would take it away, but I also had too much homework to do in the time I did have. Whenever Friday came around, Professor McGonagall checked the time turner to see how much I was using it.

It occurred to me that if I could learn the spell she was using on me, I could stop sleeping altogether and use that time to do homework. Unfortunately, I had no idea what the spell was, because Professor McGonagall always cast the spell non-verbally. When I thought about it, she probably did it that way so that I wouldn't be able to use it myself.

I knew I was going to have to do some research in the library, but I didn't know when I would have the time. I already barely had enough time to get my homework and studying done.

When the signup sheets began to circulate for the Christmas holidays, I came up with the perfect solution. I didn't really want to go home to my parents, because that would only be a discouraging and lonely experience. Harry was staying at the castle like he does every year, and Ron had decided to stay too, claiming that he didn't want to spend two weeks listening to Percy brag about how wonderful it was being Head Boy.

I decided that I would stay at the castle with my friends. I could both keep Harry company with Ron, and have plenty of time to spend researching in the library. So, I signed up to stay at the castle.

As the end of term approached, my workload began to lighten. It seemed that none of my teachers wanted to correct assignments during the break. Finally, the Wednesday before the beginning of the break, I decided to actually sleep the full night. I went up to the dormitory early, and by the time I pulled the curtains around my bed, the rest of my dorm mates had still not come in.

Even though I hadn't slept properly in weeks, I found that for some reason I couldn't fall asleep. A couple hours later, when the rest of the girls came up from the common room, I was still lying in bed, trying to fall asleep.

"Where do you think Hermione is tonight?" Lavender's voice came through the door.

"I don't know. I never see her anymore," Parvati replied.

I tensed. They didn't realize I was here, because they couldn't see me. I wasn't sure if I should interrupt and announce my presence, or keep quiet.

"I mean does she ever sleep?" I heard Lily ask.

"Who knows? I mean, she's always been weird," Parvati replied.

"I don't know why Harry and Ron hang out with her. I mean, she's so boring," Lavender said.

"Maybe they've finally ditched her and that's why we never see her anymore," Lily suggested.

"Yeah, she's probably holed up in the library somewhere," Sally-Anne added.

"I just hope that next time, Ron chooses someone better," Lavender said.

"What do you mean?" Parvati asked. "It's not like he was going out with Hermione." At this, the other girls all laughed.

"Maybe not, but if he was, I just think he could do better," Lavender replied.

"You mean you?" Lily asked.

"Maybe," Lavender said in a sing-song voice.

As the girl's conversation drifted to the topic of boys, I continued to lie motionless in bed. Strangely, I felt an odd, unpleasant feeling in my stomach when Lavender admitted to liking Ron, but I couldn't figure out what it was.

On the final Friday of term, I went to Professor McGonagall's office as usual for my weekly check-in. She took my time turner, performed the _tempus revelio_ spell on it, and then put it in her desk.

"I will return this to you at the start of term after the holidays," Professor McGonagall informed me, making me feel very small.

I didn't argue. I knew that I'd messed up, and that this was all just the consequences that came with my actions. I'd lied to Professor McGonagall and now she couldn't trust me. I felt like I was six years old and lying about getting into the cookie jar whilst sporting a face full of crumbs and chocolate smears.

"I noticed you've elected to remain at Hogwarts over the holidays," Professor McGonagall commented. "That's the second year in a row."

"Yeah," I shrugged. "Well I don't want to leave Harry here all alone. You know how his family is."

While Harry wasn't the only reason I'd decided to stay over the holidays, he was definitely a factor. I elected not to mention the research I wanted to do in the library. Professor McGonagall already didn't trust me and though I felt immensely guilty for going behind her back again, I didn't really have much of a choice in the matter.

"How are things with you at home?" Professor McGonagall asked me then, throwing me off. After spending weeks and months talking about my classes and my time turner, I was surprised at the question.

"Things are fine," I replied in a non-committal voice.

"Are you sure?" Professor McGonagall asked. "Because I know you had some difficulties over the summer, and – "

"We sorted that out," I assured her, cutting her off.

Professor McGonagall looked at me with a curious expression.

"Hermione, I'm not muggle-born. Both my parents were magical, but I know that it can sometimes be difficult for children of muggle-born parents as well as their muggle parents to adapt to the situation. If things are strained, then perhaps you'd like someone to talk to? I don't imagine you're aware of this, but both Professors Sinistra and Vector are muggle-born as well and might be able to help you."

I appreciated the offer, but I was fine. I didn't need to talk to anybody. Things with my parents weren't strained because I was a witch. It had started out that way, but I'd made things worse over the summer by threatening them. It wasn't as simple as it used to be, and it had been a choice I'd made that I couldn't take back. I certainly didn't feel like talking to my astronomy or arithmancy teachers about it.

That evening, I sat in the common room and penned out a letter to my parents. I'd been putting it off for a while, but knew it was something I had to do. I'd been hoping that a letter might come from them, to check whether I was coming home for Christmas, but it was at the point now that I couldn't keep waiting on them to take the initiative.

_Dear Mum and Dad,_

_I'm sure you've realized from my lack of correspondence as to when to pick me up from the train station that I will not be returning home for the Christmas holidays this year. There's simply too much work to be done, and it's best if I do it at school where I have full-time access to their library. _

_I won't be home at Easter either, it comes much too close to exam time for me to afford to leave. I will let you know at the end of the year when the Hogwarts Express will be bringing me home for the summer._

_Your daughter,_

_Hermione_

"What's that?" Ron asked, slipping into a chair beside me. I hastily covered the letter, not wanting him to see. I hadn't told Ron or Harry the details of my troubles with my parents. They would pale in comparison to the problems Harry had with his relatives. My parents had never put bars on my windows, after all. And it seemed selfish to complain about my own parents when Harry's relatives were so horrible and his parents were dead.

"Nothing," I muttered. "Just a letter I've got to mail."

"I can walk with you to the owlery," Ron offered. "Harry's at his last quidditch practice of the term."

"What's the point of having a practice when they're about to split up for two weeks?" I wondered. After the game against Hufflepuff, wouldn't it have made sense to call practices to an end until January?

Ron rolled his eyes. "If they go too long without practicing, the players will get out of sync," he explained.

I nodded, as if I understood. "Well I can mail this later," I said. It would reach my parents quickly once I sent it, and there was no reason to rush. "How about a game of wizard's chess?"

"Really?" Ron asked in surprise. "You have time for that? What about homework?"

"It's the end of term," was my reply. "I have some time to spare."

Grinning, Ron immediately began to set up the board. We hadn't played in a long time and I knew I was going to be rusty.

"No bets this time," I stated firmly. "I'm going to lose, so it wouldn't really be fair."

"You'd lose anyway, regardless of how long it's been," Ron pointed out. In mock fury, I punched Ron in the shoulder. Not hard, but with enough force that it made an impact. Ron laughed.

"I'll win one of these days," I assured him. "And when I do – "

"I have to kiss you," Ron finished for me. "I remember."

I felt my face heat up as I blushed. "What?" I asked, feeling confused and full of a strange jumble of other emotions.

"That was our wager," Ron reminded me. "The first time you ever played. If you won, I had to kiss you, and if I won, you had to do my potions homework for a month."

"Oh yeah," I recalled. I'd set those stakes because I'd wanted to make Parvati and Lavender jealous. It occurred to me that after the conversation I'd overheard between the girls the other night, a kiss from Ron would make them even more jealous now than it would have then. Or Lavender at the very least.

"Well you're not going to win," Ron said, making the whole thing a moot point. "I'm way too good."

"We'll just see about that," I challenged. We both knew he was right, at least in regards to tonight's game, but it was nice to pretend like I might win. And I remained determined to beat him one day.

The rest of the night passed quickly and it was easily one of the best nights I'd had at Hogwarts of late. Harry returned from quidditch practice and joined in our chess tournament. Though I couldn't beat Ron, I did beat Harry, which brought me a great deal of satisfaction. While Harry played Ron, I made a quick trip to the owlery, and then returned to get creamed by Ron yet again. By the time I made my way up to bed, I was thinking how much I missed just having fun with my friends.


	50. A Bad Day in Hogsmeade

Chapter 50: A Bad Day in Hogsmeade

The next morning, a field trip to Hogsmeade was scheduled to celebrate the end of term. Filled with excitement, I met up with Harry and Ron that morning and together we had a quick breakfast in the Great Hall.

When it came time to leave for the village, Ron and I said goodbye to Harry and departed with the other students. I did feel badly about having to leave Harry behind, but he was going to do research on brooms to replace his Nimbus, so I was sure he would enjoy the day well enough. After all, researching is one of the most interesting activities I could think of, and Harry loved brooms.

Deep down, I was secretly glad Harry wasn't coming with us. Harry and Ron were so close, and I always felt a little bit left out when all three of us were together. It would be nice to have another day just two of us.

The view on the walk to Hogsmeade was completely different from last time. On our last trip, it hadn't snowed yet, but now it was the middle of winter and the ground was covered in a layer of snow. The day was clear, the sun shining down on us and the glittering snow all around.

"The castle will be quiet this year," I said as we walked. "I didn't notice many people signing up to stay behind."

"I think we're the only ones from Gryffindor staying behind," Ron commented. "Last time I checked, ours were the only named on the sign-up sheet in the common room."

"We'll have the run of the tower," I smiled, thinking how nice it would be to have our pick of any seats in the common room.

When we arrived in the village, Ron directed me straight to Honeydukes, claiming that we had to do our sweet shopping early, before the shop ran out of candy. As he loaded up his arms with enough candy to feed our entire class, I reminded him that we should purchase some for Harry as well.

"We should get something we didn't get last time," I suggested, walking around the store. There was a display over in the corner of the store labelled _Unusual Tastes_ that caught my eye. Perhaps there would be something there that Harry might like.

There was a shelf devoted to insect related candy, like Fudge Flies and Chocolate Caterpillars, Grasshopper Gumdrops, and Cockroach Clusters, but they didn't look all that appetizing and Harry didn't strike me as someone who had a desire to eat bugs.

"Ooh, look at these!" Ron exclaimed, reaching for a bowl of lollipops. "Oh, hang on," he frowned. "No, these are blood-flavored."

I agreed with Ron that Harry probably wouldn't like those either, and as Ron began examining the candy-covered bugs, a familiar voice surprised me and caused me to jump and spin around in surprise.

Harry wasn't supposed to be here. He was supposed to be back up at the castle, doing research in the library. He didn't have permission to be in the village. Seeing him there, I felt confusion, frustration, and a bit of jealousy surge through me as I saw the day I'd planned vanish into thin air.

Harry told us about the map that Fred and George had given him, and I was immediately unimpressed. For one thing, the map had to be illicit. There was no way the professors would let him walk around with it if they knew. And what if it was dangerous? Tom Riddle's diary had turned out to be extremely dangerous last year, and it was highly suspicious that this map had so much knowledge of Hogwarts and the people in it.

And what about Sirius Black? If Harry had been able to sneak out of the castle, surely, he'd be able to sneak in! Harry pointed out that it was extremely unlikely that he even knew about the few secret passages that Filch didn't already know about, and while he made a good point, I still didn't like it.

I realized that it was probably more my resentment at having my day interrupted than true belief that the map was evil. With Harry here in Hogsmeade, Ron would want to show him all the shops and sights. I would be shuffled to the background into my usual position of walking just slightly behind the two boys.

It wasn't that I didn't want Harry to experience Hogsmeade. Despite the rule breaking, I was glad that he was here. It had been disappointing for all of us when we'd learned prior to our first trip that Harry couldn't come. And of course, I wasn't going to turn him in – what kind of friend would I be if I did that? I was just a little sad when Ron pulled Harry towards a display of jelly slugs and acid pops, leaving me to trail behind them, all but forgotten.

It was cold outside, so after Honeydukes, we headed to the Three Broomsticks to warm up with some butterbeers. We chose a table near the back of the pub to keep Harry as out of sight as possible and for a moment I just enjoyed the feeling of the liquid warming me from the inside.

Suddenly, Professor McGonagall, Professor Flitwick, Hagrid and the Minister for Magic all entered the pub. Harry froze and I realized that if he was seen here, not only would he get in trouble, but so would Ron and I. And I couldn't afford to get into any trouble for this with Professor McGonagall after what had just happened with the time turner.

Ron and I pushed Harry down under the table and I pulled out my wand and used it to move the Christmas tree next to our table over a bit to block Harry from view completely. The group came towards us and finally sat down at the table right next to us. Thankfully, the tree was blocking Ron and I as well, so they didn't pay us any attention.

My heart was racing as they all settled in and I hoped they didn't stay too long. I wasn't cut out for this kind of stressful situation. As I sat there, I imagined every possible worst-case scenario of how this could end, all resulting in my time turner being confiscated permanently, and the three of us landing ourselves in detention for the rest of the year. It was a horrible thought. I felt like throwing up.

Then they started to talk about Sirius Black.

When they mentioned that Sirius Black had been best friends with Harry's father, I heard Harry drop his glass underneath the table. Ron kicked him for the noise, but I just sat there, shell-shocked. I worried how Harry was doing, but I couldn't check on him without making his presence known.

When the Minister revealed that Black had been the one to betray Harry's family, that he had been the one to reveal their location to You-Know-Who, Hagrid started yelling, and the look on Ron's face told me he wanted to punch something. All I could think of was Harry, sitting under the table. I wanted to hug him. I needed to offer him comfort. But I couldn't.

Ron's fists were clenched and I could see his knuckles whitening. He was going to hurt himself. I reached out and placed my hand over his fists. I should have been comforting Harry, but since he was still under the table, I settled for comforting Ron.

Finally, eventually, the adults slowly began to rise and disperse. We waited until the were all out of the pub before leaning down and bending to look under the table at Harry.

He was crouched in a seemingly uncomfortable and awkward position, and though the adults were gone, he didn't move. His face was pale white and his eyes were glazed over, staring into nothingness. I nudged him gently, but still he didn't respond.

I felt helpless. I didn't know what to say. I wanted to comfort him, but there were no words. Finally, we got Harry back in his seat and Ron got him another butterbeer. After we had forced him to drink it, we carefully led him out of the pub.

Once we were back out in the cold, Harry seemed to recover a bit, though it was clear he was nowhere close to being fine. He was still near catatonic and I wished Ron and I could accompany him back to the castle, but he had to take the secret passage back and Ron and I had to enter the castle through the front doors to be officially checked back into the building.

"Do you think he's going to be alright?" Ron asked as we left Honeydukes after seeing Harry off.

"I don't know," I said honestly. "Come on, let's hurry. I want to get back before he does."

Harry didn't say a word all through dinner, no matter how much Ron and I tried to get him talking. We couldn't ask him about what we'd overheard, because there were too many people around us, but I wasn't sure that talking about it would have been helpful either. We tried to take his mind off things by making fun of Professor Trelawney and making plans for when everyone went home the next day and we had the tower to ourselves. But Harry was unresponsive. It was as if he couldn't even hear us, or if he could, he gave no indication of it.

I was growing more and more worried. When we returned to the common room, Harry headed straight for his dorm and I looked to Ron imploringly.

"Follow him," I insisted. "See if you can get him to say something."

"What am I supposed to say?" Ron inquired. "If he doesn't want to talk – "

"At least make sure he knows you're there to listen," I implored. I would go up there myself, but I felt like this was a time when Harry needed Ron more than me. I was the one who was good at facts and reason, but I was terrible at emotions. Not that Ron was much better, but at least he was a guy.

Ron nodded and disappeared up the stairs. I waited in the common room for a few minutes, trying to decide if I should stay or just go to bed myself. Ron could be up there with Harry all night, after all.

Just as I was about to go upstairs myself, Ron returned to the common room and met my expectant gaze with a shrug.

"He was asleep," he muttered.

I shook my head. "No he wasn't," I said. There was no way he'd been able to fall asleep that quickly. Not with everything that must be swirling around in his head.

"Well he wants me to think he's asleep," Ron amended. "He doesn't want to talk."

With nothing else to do, Ron set up his chessboard and we played a couple games of wizard's chess. My heart wasn't really in it though, and I could tell Ron's wasn't either. I played more poorly than usual, and it took Ron very little time to beat me, doing it without any of his usual pride and smugness.


	51. Somno Exhaustio

Chapter 51: Somno Exhaustio

The next morning, I was awakened to the sound of my roommates leaving for the holidays. I stayed in bed until they had all gone so that I wouldn't have to endure any awkward goodbyes and then I rose and stretched, looking around at the empty room. I rejoiced, knowing that for two weeks I would have my dorm entirely to myself.

I threw the curtains of the windows open, letting the sunlight stream into the room, and began to get ready for the day. I took a long and leisurely shower, glad I didn't have to worry about leaving time and hot water for the other girls and then danced around the room as I gathered my books.

When I descended to the common room, it was to find that it was filled with students milling around and saying last minute goodbyes to their friends. I found Ron sitting off to the side and joined him, setting my book bag down next to me.

"Ginny just left," Ron said when I arrived. "She asked me to tell you goodbye. We weren't sure when you'd be down."

"Oh, so your family's all gone?" I asked. "Are you sure you didn't want to go home with them?"

"Are you kidding? I get enough of Percy's attitude already, thanks. And Ginny's just going to whine all holiday," Ron replied.

"But what about your parents?" I asked. "You haven't seen them in months."

"Neither have you," Ron pointed out.

"It's different," I said, feeling my cheeks turn pink. I turned my head away and decided to change the subject.

"So how many students are staying?" I asked.

"I don't know. Not many," Ron replied. "I don't even think anyone from Hufflepuff is staying behind."

I nodded, thinking about how empty the library was likely to be over the break. I would probably have the whole thing to myself. It was an enticing prospect and if it weren't for Harry and Ron I'd likely be planning to spend the whole two weeks holed up down there.

As the students slowly filtered out of the room, more and more chairs became available. Finally, when Ron and I were the only ones left, we moved to the armchairs by the fireplace – the best seats in the room – and I pulled out my books and began to make a list of everything I had to do over the break.

"Hermione, it's the first day of Christmas vacation and you're going to ruin it by doing _homework_?" Ron asked, appalled.

"If I get it done now, I won't have to do it later," I replied, almost mechanically. I had had this conversation with Ron one too many times. "Do you really want to be writing an essay for Snape on Christmas day? Or worse, have to practice spells the day before classes start and miss out on hearing about everyone else's holidays?"

"I'll get it done before then," Ron said. "I just don't need to start _right now_."

"Well next week, when you're up to your ears in assignments, and mine are all done, I don't want to hear any complaining," I said.

"I don't complain!" Ron protested.

I rolled my eyes but didn't respond. My to do list now complete, I decided to start with astronomy. I pulled out my notes and began to spread them out on the table. When I discovered I didn't have enough room, I dragged over two more tables and spread my star charts out over all three. It wasn't as though anyone else needed them, after all. While I measured angles and circled around the tables, Ron laid down on the couch with a bagful of candy and began to snack.

A few hours later, when Harry finally descended, I was still working with my star charts and Ron was rubbing his belly, clearly full after eating too much candy. The bags under his eyes indicated that he probably didn't sleep much last night, and his demeanor indicated that he was still upset about yesterday.

Gently, I attempted to bring up the events of yesterday, just to gauge how Harry was dealing with everything. Ron as usual had significantly less tact and outright asked if he was planning to go after Sirius Black now that he knew the truth.

To the horror of both Ron and I, Harry displayed a great deal of anger and desire to kill Black. It was scary. He didn't outright say whether he was going to chase after Black or not, but I could tell that there was a part of him that wanted to, and a part of him that knew it was suicide.

We sat in awkward silence for a while, and I looked everywhere but straight at Harry. I could understand his anger, which was perfectly normal. I just couldn't accept his blatant disregard for his own safety. Going after Black wouldn't be revenge, it would be offering himself up as a sacrifice.

As we sat there, I realized the downside of having the common room all to ourselves. There was nobody to distract us, nothing going on to mitigate the silence. It was just the three of us in an otherwise large and empty room. I looked to Ron, pleading with him to help me come up with an idea, anything that would get Harry thinking about something other than Black.

Ron suggested that we pay a visit to Hagrid. At first, I was hesitant. Harry really should stay inside the castle, for his own safety. But Harry wanted to go, and it would be better than staring at the common room walls for another few hours. And since there was nothing I or Ron could think of to say to get Harry to change his mind, I hoped that maybe at least Hagrid would be able to get through to him if he continued to insist on dwelling on Sirius Black.

When we arrived at Hagrid's, we knocked on the door, but no one answered. We were preparing to leave when we heard strange noises coming from inside the house. We called out to Hagrid again and he appeared at the door, disheveled and attempting unsuccessfully to hide the fact that he was crying. His eyes were wide and red and there were tears all over his face and vest.

All conversations about Sirius Black were immediately put on hold as we ushered Hagrid back into the house and began to comfort him, asking what was going on. It turned out that Buckbeak was going to be put on trial for attacking Malfoy. With Lucius Malfoy heading the prosecution, I knew Buckbeak didn't really stand a chance on his own. There was even an entire class full of witnesses who would probably be on Malfoy's side.

I wanted to comfort Hagrid somehow, so I told him if he put up a good defence, he would have a chance. I knew it would have to be a really strong defence though, and somehow, I didn't think Hagrid would be able to come up with one. He would probably try bringing Buckbeak to the Ministry to try to show them how friendly he is, and then in the excitement, Buckbeak would probably end up going on a rampage through the Ministry of Magic.

I volunteered to help Hagrid with his case. I could at least try doing some research in the library and see where that would get me. Maybe there were similar cases that I could use. Thankfully, though the trip to Hagrid's was hardly the fun-filled visit I was hoping for, it did manage to get Harry's mind off of Sirius Black.

The next day, Harry, Ron and I started our research in the library. We practically took up residence in the Ministry of Magic archives aisle. Every night, we brought back as many books as Madam Pince would allow back to the common room to look through. Unfortunately, it seemed that all similar cases ended in conviction and brutal murders of the creatures in question. The only case I could find where the creature got off was in 1296, but it was only because the manticore was so dangerous, nobody wanted to get close enough to kill it.

All the research was becoming tiring and discouraging, even for me. We hadn't found anything useful for Hagrid yet, and Harry and Ron were becoming restless. I knew the library wasn't the place either of them wanted to spend their holiday.

Amidst the research we were doing for Hagrid, I also occasionally would meander over to the advanced charms section of the library in search of the spell that Professor McGonagall had been using to assuage my tiredness. Harry and Ron inquired as to what I was doing at first, but I just told them it was some extra research for my charms essay and they didn't pry.

I skimmed through _The Standard Book of Spells Grade 7_, _Advanced Spellcasting_ and _Complex Charms: Spells for the Superior Spellcaster_. When none of them had any mention of a spell to get rid of exhaustion, I switched to the aisle with books about time turners. It wasn't until the fifth book I tried that I found some mention.

_'Time turners must be used with caution. Frequent use of the time turner may result in exhaustion, dizziness, fainting, and could lead to death or a coma-like state from lack of sleep. If frequent use if unavoidable, the 'no-sleep' spell may be used.'_

Excited with this breakthrough, I ran back to the spell book aisle and looked up the 'no-sleep' spell. Unfortunately, all I could find was a brief reference, saying it was too advanced to put in the book. With a sigh, I returned the book to the shelf and headed back to join Harry and Ron.

The day before Christmas, we were in the library as usual, and Madam Pince had just left, trusting me well enough to keep Harry and Ron under control. As we were the only ones in the library, it wasn't really necessary to enforce all the rules as strictly as during the term. It was almost time for lunch, and Ron was starving.

"Let's just give up, we're not going to find anything," Ron whined, slamming his book shut.

"We can't just give up, Hagrid's counting on us," I insisted.

"Come on, Hermione, honestly. Do you really think we're going to be able to make a case strong enough to beat whatever Malfoy's dad's going to say?" Ron asked.

"We have to try" I said.

"We are trying. We have been trying all holiday. I'm tired of reading. I want to enjoy a meal without having to run off to the library right after. I want to go outside and get some fresh air," Ron said.

"Nobody's stopping you," I snapped. "Do what you want. I however, intend to stay here and help my friend."

"Alright, fine," Ron said, standing up. "I'm going to the Great Hall for lunch."

Ron turned and stalked out of the library. After shooting me an apologetic look, Harry got up and followed him. With a sigh, I shut my book and walked over to the nearest window to look out over the grounds. I should have been used to it by now, Ron got angry all the time, but somehow every time he yelled at me, I ended up feeling terrible inside.

Once Ron gets some food in him, he'll be in a better mood. At least, that's what I told myself. He just needed some time away from the library. I have to remind myself that not everybody understands just how wonderful the library is and that Ron didn't find books quite as enthralling as me.

When I turned around to go back to my table, it occurred to me that I was completely alone in the library. Not even Madam Pince was there. I knew I was never going to have another opportunity that perfect, so I abandoned the archives and raced across the library to the restricted section.

It had occurred to me a few days ago that the answer to my search lay beyond those doors. And while I didn't want to break the rules and Madam Pince's trust by going into the restricted section, I really needed the spell. I rationalized that without the spell, I would get behind on my school work, and all my teachers would be disappointed in me. Plus, with the spell I would even have more time to help Hagrid with his case, and surely helping a friend is an honorable thing to do.

So, being careful to step lightly and eager to get this done quickly lest Madam Pince return, I opened the doors to the restricted section and entered, tiptoeing through the aisles, so that I would hear if footsteps were approaching.

I found what appeared to be the spell book section and gingerly slid a book off of the shelf. I checked the table of contents, and was disappointed to find that my spell wasn't there. I checked two more books before I found it. _No-Sleep Spell, page 64_. I felt my heartbeat speed up and I looked around to make sure I was really alone. I wiped my palms on my robes and then turned to the correct page. This was it.

The No-Sleep Spell: _Somno Exhaustio_.


	52. Alone for Christmas: Part 1

Chapter 52: Alone for Christmas: Part 1

I filed the information about the spell away in my mind and shoved the book back on the shelf. Then I bolted out of the restricted section, suddenly feeling much calmer back in the archives section. Madam Pince returned only five minutes later, and she made her rounds through the aisles to check that everything was in order. When she approached the restricted section, I could feel my heart pounding for fear that I had left something out of place and that she would notice, but she walked on and I let out a breath I hadn't known I was holding.

I realized I could no longer focus in the library with Madam Pince wandering around, so I gathered my books and left, heading to the Great Hall to join the boys for lunch. Ron still seemed a little upset with me, but when I suggested we play wizard's chess after lunch, he brightened, all memories of our argument forgotten. I couldn't go back to the library anyway, at least not until the feelings of guilt and dread deep inside me lightened.

As it was Christmas Eve, we spent the rest of the day relaxing in the common room. Around four in the afternoon, I decided to try to work a little bit on my herbology homework, while Harry and Ron chose to go out to the transfiguration courtyard and have a snowball fight. Though it crossed my mind to chastise them for neglecting their schoolwork, I didn't think I could handle another argument that day, so I let them go.

Christmas morning, I awoke to discover that my head had been pushed off my pillow and was hanging at an awkward angle off my bed. My neck ached, and I was surprised it didn't wake me up earlier. When I sat up, grumbling, Crookshanks glanced at me from his position, curled into a ball in the center of my pillow. I laughed and tried to pet him, receiving a small bite on my thumb instead.

As I was alone in my dormitory, I decided to go to Harry and Ron's dorm and suggest we bring our presents down to the common room and open them by the fire. If I was lucky, they wouldn't have started yet. I got up and moved to leave, but Crookshanks meowed very loudly at me.

"Do you want to come too?" I asked, smiling when the cat got up and plowed his way through the presents to reach me. Somehow a ribbon managed to get dislodged from the present I intended to give to Ron and it was now hanging around Crookshanks' neck. I laughed and picked the silly thing up, carrying him with me to the boy's dormitory.

When I walked in, the first thing I noticed was that Harry and Ron were having fun without me. The second thing I noticed was that they were already well through opening their presents and that they'd obviously not thought to wait for me.

Immediately upon seeing me with Crookshanks in hand, Ron pointed at my cat angrily and ordered me not to bring him into the dorm. I was going to tell Ron that it was Christmas and nobody should be excluded from the festivities, including felines, but then I noticed the very new, very good, very expensive broom right in front of Harry. I dropped Crookshanks unceremoniously onto the nearest bed, my eyes fixed on the broom.

When Harry revealed that he didn't know who'd sent it to him, I became immediately suspicious. A firebolt was a very big gift. Surely the sender would want Harry to know who they were, so he could thank them. What would motivate someone to spend so much money on something but keep it a secret? If the sender had purely good intentions, then surely they would want credit for buying the broom, which could only mean that the broom was sent with bad intentions. And I could only think of one person who would want to hurt Harry.

As Harry and Ron argued with me about the safety of the broom and the mystery of its sender, I didn't notice Crookshanks slowly stalking his way under the empty beds belonging to Seamus, Dean, and Neville as he approached Ron's bed.

None of us were paying attention when Crookshanks lunged at Scabbers, but as Crookshanks missed Scabbers and clawed at Ron's arm, ripping a huge hole in his pyjamas, Ron cried out in rage. He flailed and knocked Crookshanks to the floor as he wrapped himself around his rat, all the while yelling at me. As Crookshanks prepared to leap at Ron again, Ron swung out with a foot to kick him and missed, hitting Harry's trunk instead.

I ran over and scooped up Crookshanks and wrestled with him as he tried to wriggle out of my grasp.

"Crookshanks stop it!" I muttered to him. "You're being vey rude!"

With Harry's trunk knocked open, a sneakoscope fell out and immediately started whistling very loudly. In the chaos of Harry trying to quiet the sneakoscope, Ron nursing his foot, and me trying to get Crookshanks to calm down, Ron demanded that I leave, his voice frustrated and annoyed.

I backed away and quickly ran down the stairs to the common room and then back up to my own dorm, biting back the tears. All I'd wanted was a nice Christmas morning with my friends, but as usual everything had gone sideways as soon as I'd arrived. I was starting to think that Harry and Ron would prefer not to have me around.

I'd seen Ron's face when Harry had shown up on our second visit to Hogsmeade. He'd been so excited not to have to spend the entire day alone with me. And Ron _hated_ Crookshanks. In fact, I was convinced that Crookshanks' behavior was a reaction to Ron's obvious dislike of him. Animals can sense these sorts of things in people. If Ron wouldn't get so worked up every time Crookshanks was around, then maybe Crookshanks would always be attacking him and his rat.

I set Crookshanks down on Lavender's bed and began to walk back towards my own. When Crookshanks started to head back to the door, I cut him off, shutting the door in front of him.

"Oh no you don't," I said, shaking a finger at him. "We don't need to make any more of a ruckus than we already have." I sighed to myself, trying to figure out how we were going to salvage the day now.

I was worried for Harry and this new broom, but I couldn't tell him now without Ron dismissing it and accusing me of trying to suck the fun out of everything. I was also angry with Ron for trying to kick Crookshanks. Crookshanks was just doing what cats do. And he was always accusing me of hating Scabbers, but if Ron knew me at all, he'd know I cared just as much about Scabbers as I did about Crookshanks. I would never intentionally kick Scabbers, because I knew it would upset Ron. Yet Ron had no problem kicking Crookshanks.

I looked back at the presents on the end of my bed and frowned. There were the gifts for Harry and Ron that I had owl-ordered, since I didn't want Ron to catch me buying his gift when we were in Hogsmeade, and there was the gift I had intended to send to my parents.

First, I picked up the one for my parents. I had bought them a wizarding history book on my last trip to Hogsmeade. I had wrapped it, and I had even written a letter to accompany it, but I hadn't sent it. A part of me had wanted to wait and see if they would send me anything first, but of course, they hadn't. The letter I'd sent a few days before the end of term had been my version of giving up. I shoved the book to the bottom of my trunk. Maybe I would give it to them in the summer.

Next, I picked up Ron's present. Even though he hadn't told me he wanted them, I knew he did. On both trips to Hogsmeade, he had lingered at the display with a look of longing in his eyes. They were keeper's gloves; very good quality that made it easier to keep hold of the quaffle when it was thrown at odd angles.

Ron had never expressed a desire to try out for the house Quidditch team, but as he preferred the position of keeper, he couldn't have, since the current captain, Oliver Wood, was a keeper. But Wood was a seventh year, which meant next year Gryffindor would need a new keeper. I secretly hoped that Ron would consider trying out and had been hoping that the gloves would have been a nice push in the right direction. As fun as it was to watch the games with him in the stands, I felt it would be even more fun to watch him play the game with Harry.

However, I was angry with Ron, and I really didn't want to talk to him right now. I shoved the gloves into the bottom of my trunk with the book for my parents. He could have them when he apologized, I decided.

Last, I picked up the gift I had intended for Harry. For him, I had purchased a pair of enchanted Quidditch goggles. He could wear them over his glasses, and they would repel rain, block the sunlight, and help him to see clearly in fog. After the last game, I thought they were a good idea. I wasn't angry at Harry, but I couldn't give him his gift right now because he was with Ron. I placed the gift on my side table and decided I would give it to him later, when Ron was busy doing something else.

I turned back to Crookshanks and glanced at the place where the gifts had been piled. It was empty now. I remembered the overflowing piles on Harry and Ron's beds and bit my lip to stop the tears that were threatening to spill onto my cheeks. It wasn't that I was a selfish person and I wanted heaps and heaps of presents. That wasn't it at all. It just would have been nice to know that someone – one person – cared enough to get me something on Christmas.

The rest of the morning was very tense. I was still angry with Ron and had decided not to talk to him until he apologized for kicking Crookshanks. Ron apparently was angry with me for letting Crookshanks into the dormitory, though I could hardly see how that was fair. Crookshanks deserved to celebrate Christmas just like the rest of us, but now he was shut up in my dorm while Scabbers sat peacefully on Ron's shoulder. Harry spent the whole morning staring at his broom despite my earlier warnings, but I didn't say anything because I knew neither of the boys would take me seriously. There was only one person I could go to about this.

I followed the boys down to the Great Hall for the Christmas feast, which was even more awkward than I was anticipating. As there were so few of us left at Hogwarts, the house tables had been removed and one table was prepared in the center of the room. Teachers and students both were meant to eat together. Neither myself nor Harry nor Ron made much attempt to speak through the meal, allowing the teachers to carry the conversation.

When the meal was over, Harry and Ron stood to leave, but I remained behind.

"Professor McGonagall?" I asked quietly once they were out of earshot. "Could I speak with you privately?"


	53. Alone for Christmas: Part 2

Chapter 53: Alone for Christmas: Part 2

"Shall we go to my office?" Professor McGonagall asked, looking concerned, probably assuming it had to do with the time turner.

"No, the Entrance Hall would be fine," I replied. Professor McGonagall nodded and led me out.

"Is it your schedule?" she asked immediately after the door closed behind us. "Do you need to drop a few classes before the next term starts again?"

"No, no, nothing like that," I said in a rush. "I actually wanted to talk to you because I'm worried about Harry."

I saw something flicker across Professor McGonagall's face for a moment at Harry's name, but it only lasted a second and I couldn't be sure what it was. "And what is it that has you worried, Ms. Granger?" she asked.

"He was given a Firebolt for Christmas – " I began.

"A Firebolt!" Professor McGonagall exclaimed with a rare smile. "On the Gryffindor team! Severus won't get to keep the Quidditch trophy in his office much longer."

"Professor," I said impatiently. Was winning at Quidditch really the only thing anyone could think about these days?

"I apologize, please, carry on," Professor McGonagall replied.

"Well, it's just that the Firebolt was sent anonymously, and it's so expensive, it got me wondering as to who could have sent it," I said. Professor McGonagall remained focused on my words, so I continued. "And I thought that most likely, if someone was properly gifting Harry a Firebolt, they would have left their name, and there's got to be a reason why they didn't." I paused and then decided to throw it all out there. "Professor, I think Sirius Black sent the broom and I think he's cursed it."

I waited for Professor McGonagall to say something. She stood still, thinking everything over. "Well Ms. Granger, though I have no idea how Sirius Black would have gotten his hands on enough money to purchase a Firebolt, nor do I have any idea how he could have managed to purchase one without being identified, I agree that this is very disturbing. Black is clearly much more notorious than anyone could have predicted. After all, he escaped from Azkaban when no other had ever done so. I think the best thing to do would be to have this broom examined intensively before anyone tries to fly it."

I was relieved to say the least. I had been worrying about Harry all day. I knew Harry would probably be upset with me for doing this, but I would rather have my friend a little angry than to have him gravely injured or dead, especially if I knew I could have prevented it.

I led Professor McGonagall up to Gryffindor tower and entered the portrait hole just in front of her. Harry and Ron were sitting on the couch, staring at the Firebolt, which was hovering in midair in front of them. When we entered, Harry and Ron turned their attention to Professor McGonagall and I slipped into the nearest seat and grabbed a book, hiding my face behind it because I didn't want to see Harry's face when the Firebolt was taken away.

Neither Harry nor Ron was happy when Professor McGonagall seized the broom and told them it would need to be stripped down. As usual, Ron was the most vocal with his anger. He yelled and then stormed upstairs and slammed the door behind him. It was the sort of rage that he would eventually cool off from, and in a couple of days without anything new happening, we would be fine again.

It was Harry that was the bigger problem. I looked to him pleadingly, willing him to understand as he stared at the portrait hole where Professor McGonagall had disappeared with his broom. When he finally moved, he turned to face me and for a moment, he was silent. Then he spoke, and I almost wished to have the silence back.

"Really Hermione?" he asked, his voice low and sounding almost like a whisper in contrast to Ron's explosion. "You just had to go and ruin Christmas," he said, shoving past me and walking off to join Ron, probably so that the two of them could rant about how much they hated me.

Left alone in the common room, I felt tears prickling at the corners of my eyes again. If I had had any strength left, I would have fought them, but I was spent. They began to fall freely onto my cheeks, and I slumped into an armchair by the fire as I allowed my emotions to spill out onto the carpet.

When my eyes had run dry and I felt well enough to ascend the stairs, I made my way back up to my dorm. While I prepared for bed, I didn't think, I simply went through the motions like a machine. When I was finally about to get into bed, I noticed something out of place. Sitting on my bedside table was the gift I had meant to give to Harry when Ron wasn't around.

Upon seeing it, for some unfathomable reason, I laughed out loud. It was only fitting, it seemed, that I would neither give nor receive any gifts this year. Maybe I wasn't meant to have friends. Maybe I was meant to go through life alone forever. After all, so far all my friends had done was to constantly bring me down.

Without friends, I would have more time to do my own work; I wouldn't have to look over their work anymore. Without friends I wouldn't have to waste time in the Great Hall making conversation; I could stay long enough to eat and then go to the library to get more work done. I could sit in the front of the classroom instead of at the back, where Harry liked to sit because people couldn't stare at him from there. I could skip the quidditch games because I wouldn't be required to provide support for anyone.

Without friends, I would have no one to talk to, I thought bitterly. Without friends, I would never be able to sit back and relax after a particularly long day. There would be no one to laugh with, no one to confide in, and no one to write to during the dreary summer months. There would be no more words of encouragement, no more smiles, no more friendly games of chess.

I felt another wave of sadness come over me, but I was sure I had cried every tear my body contained. I swallowed to stifle a sob and stuffed Harry's gift into the bottom of my trunk with the others. Then I climbed into my bed and pulled the covers up over my head to shut out the world.

The next morning, I awoke with cheeks stiff from dried tears I hadn't had the energy to wipe away. My eyes felt puffy, and later when I went into the bathroom to wash my face I would discover that they were very red.

I walked over to the nearest window to look out at the grounds, and I was dismayed to find that it was a beautiful day. The sun was shining and fresh snow glistened on the ground. Last night it had felt that the entire universe was going to implode, but evidently nature didn't care about the plight of a lowly third year Hogwarts student.

When I felt presentable, I descended from my dormitory with a foolish hope that Harry and Ron would be awaiting me in the common room as they usually were. Even though I should have been expecting it, the sight of the empty common room sent a pang through my chest. For some unfathomable reason, I decided to check the boys' dormitory before going to breakfast. Harry and Ron could just be sleeping in after all.

I tiptoed up the stairs on the off chance that they actually were up in the dormitory, and then poked at the door so that it swung open a tiny bit. I peeked in to find the room empty and decided that I would torture myself just a little more. I entered the room and approached Harry and Ron's beds.

I noticed movement on Ron's side table and looked closer to find Scabbers rummaging around in a package of some sort. Upon even closer inspection, I found that it was a bag of my favorite sugarless candy from Honeydukes. I wondered what it was doing on Ron's side table since he hated the candy. Then I noticed four bits of parchment lying on the floor a short distance from Ron's bed. I tentatively picked them up and discovered that they were ripped up pieces of a short letter Ron had written.

I held them together to read the letter and felt a lump form in my throat as I did.

_Hermione,_

_Happy Christmas! Enjoy the candy._

_Ron_

I carefully returned everything to where it belonged and backed out of the room, heading down to the common room once again. When I had recovered, I decided to just go down to breakfast and face the boys. Facing them was better than hiding up here in the tower, after all.

The trip downstairs had never felt so short, and before I knew it, I was in the Entrance Hall. I took a deep breath and entered the Great Hall. The house tables had been returned to their usual positions, so the Hall seemed ridiculously empty. As we had been the only three Gryffindors who stayed behind for the holidays, the Gryffindor table was empty save for Harry and Ron, who were sitting about halfway down the table.

Though my legs shook a bit for the first few steps, I made it to where they were sitting, and I took a seat.

"Good morn – "I started to say as I poured myself a glass of pumpkin juice. However, I stopped mid-sentence when both Harry and Ron stood simultaneously and exited the Hall without so much as glancing at me.

I stared after them until I realized I was still pouring the pumpkin juice and there was now a puddle of the liquid on the table and it was dripping into my lap. I did a quick spell to clean it up and then buried my head in my hands. I had fought with Harry and Ron before, but this time was different. This time, I really couldn't see either of them forgiving me.


	54. Life Goes On

Chapter 54: Life Goes On

Though I felt queasy, I forced myself to eat a piece of toast, so that I had at least a bit of food in me. While I ate, I stared out across the Hall, my eyes fixed on a solitary brick in the wall. I gulped down my toast mechanically and when I finished, I got up and left the solitude of the table, wondering where I should go. I could return to Gryffindor Tower, but that would probably only make me feel worse. If Harry and Ron were there, they would likely leave as soon as I arrived, and if they weren't there, it would mean they were hiding from me.

I suddenly realized that my legs had carried me all the way across the school to the library, instinctually searching for the one place I could feel safe and at home. I settled into my favorite chair and pulled a random book off a shelf, immersing myself in _Bursnard's Theory of Relative Living Transfiguration Techniques_.

When I was finally totally and completely focused on the book, I heard a cough from nearby, and I jumped in my chair, dropping my book on the floor and banging my knee on the table. I swung my head around to find Madam Pince approaching and I froze, suddenly remembering why I had been avoiding the library before.

Madam Pince marched towards me, her face set and her eyes very angry. A memory of breaking into the restricted section to find the no-sleep spell flashed across my mind. It felt like a block of lead had sunk to the bottom of my stomach and I couldn't move, couldn't think. All I knew was that I was about to be in more trouble than I had ever been in before, and I would probably be expelled, and oh! Professor McGonagall would be so upset with me for this, why did I ever go into the restricted section in the first place?

Madam Pince stopped in front of me and cleared her throat pointedly, staring me down, and still I couldn't move. I felt my eyes widening in fear and I stopped breathing when she opened her mouth.

"Ms. Granger that is a library book!" she cried, pointing at the book I had dropped. "What do you think you're doing, letting it lie open on the floor? It could get dirty and wrinkled, or worse, a page could get folded over or ripped!"

I stared at Madam Pince in disbelief. She was upset about the book on the ground? She wasn't saying anything about the restricted section, so I assumed she hadn't caught me after all. It was a miracle! I couldn't believe my luck.

"Ms. Granger?" Madam Pince yelled at me. I realized that I still hadn't moved, and I hadn't taken a breath for almost forty seconds. I took in a gulp of air and scrambled off my chair to pick up the offending book.

"I'm so sorry Madam Pince. I promise it'll never happen again!" I assured her. She nodded curtly and turned on her heel, continuing her rounds of the library.

As I took a few deep breaths and tried to calm myself down, I wondered if I should leave and go somewhere else, but I decided that if she hadn't caught me yet, Madam Pince was probably never going to find out what I had done. It was therefore much safer in the library than it would be to leave and risk running into certain people that I would rather not see. Or rather who would rather not see me.

I settled back into my chair with my book and spent the rest of the day reading. I skipped lunch and by dinner, my stomach was roaring. All I had eaten all day was a piece of toast. I returned the book to its shelf and headed to the Great Hall, filled with trepidation. I hoped that Harry and Ron would already be gone. After all, it was quite late. However, when I arrived, I peeked in and saw that they were sitting together at the end of the table enjoying their dinner.

I paused, still hidden behind the door, and wondered how I should proceed. Should I go and sit with them, knowing they would just ignore me, or should I sit away from them, thereby isolating myself and indicating that I was now actively avoiding them?

I finally decided that I wasn't going to be the one to make a point of avoiding them. If they wanted to ignore me, that was fine, but I wouldn't exacerbate the problem by sinking to their level. I held my head up and walked into the Hall, only to be blocked suddenly by Professor McGonagall.

"Good evening Professor," I said, a little flustered.

"Good evening Ms. Granger," Professor McGonagall replied. "I wondered if you would like to come with me to my office. I wanted to talk to you about a few things. I could have some food brought in if you haven't eaten yet," she said.

I quickly agreed, partially relieved that I didn't have to worry about the awkwardness at the Gryffindor table, but also worried about why Professor McGonagall wanted to talk to me in her office. I followed Professor McGonagall through the castle to the transfiguration wing and sat down in front of her desk, on which there was a platter of sandwiches, a large jug of pumpkin juice, and a plate of desserts.

"Forgive me," Professor McGonagall said as she loaded a plate with food for herself, "I haven't eaten yet either. Please, help yourself."

I tentatively took a couple of sandwiches and started nibbling at them, still wondering what I was doing in my teacher's office.

"How's your Christmas break going, Hermione?" Professor McGonagall asked then. I did a double-take as I tried to understand what was happening. Professor McGonagall invited me to her office to eat dinner and talk about my break? And since when did she call me Hermione and not Ms. Granger?

"Um... pretty good," I replied cautiously, still uncertain about what I was doing here.

"Are you enjoying having free reign of the castle?" Professor McGonagall inquired.

"I suppose..." I replied hesitantly. "I spend most of my time in the library, of course, but it's nice to have it completely to myself."

"Ah yes, Madam Pince mentioned that you spend a lot of time in the library," Professor McGonagall said. My stomach twisted. What if this was the intervention about my foray into the restricted section? Surely that was it, why else would Professor McGonagall summon me to her office? "She also mentioned that you spend a great deal of time in the transfiguration section," Professor McGonagall continued.

"Yes, I do," I replied, confused. "It's very comfortable there."

"Have you read anything interesting recently?" Professor McGonagall asked.

Though the intent of Professor McGonagall's questions puzzled me, I decided she wasn't trying to get me to confess to anything. If she knew I had been in the restricted section, she would tell me outright. My Head of House wasn't one to beat around the bush.

"Yes, actually, today I was reading about Bursnard's theory of relative living transfiguration techniques," I replied. I began to share my opinions on the theory, and before I knew it, an hour had passed and I had spent it discussing Bursnard with my transfiguration professor in her office.

Finally, Professor McGonagall announced that it was getting late and I should return to my dormitory. I said goodnight and stood to leave, but paused as I neared the door.

"Professor, why did you invite me to eat in your office tonight?" I asked, still confused as to what had happened here.

Professor McGonagall hesitated. "After the incident with the Firebolt yesterday and from what I observed this morning, I thought perhaps you would appreciate some company and conversation over dinner," she replied.

"Oh," I said, dumbfounded. I never would have expected that as a response. I felt an overwhelming sense of gratitude. I couldn't believe that there actually was someone who cared about me enough to go to all this trouble. "Thank you."

"You did the right thing in coming to me," Professor McGonagall said. "It's a shame that you're being punished for it."

I felt a rush of strange emotions when she said that. I felt pride knowing that Professor McGonagall approved of my actions. It felt good to have some of her trust back, especially after everything with the time turner. But it was also embarrassing to have my professor worried about my personal life.

I made sure to wake up early the next morning, when I knew Harry and Ron would still be asleep. I gathered my books in my bag and went down to breakfast. I ate quickly and then retired to the library, spreading out my books to do my homework. I ate a big enough breakfast that I didn't need lunch, and I made sure to wait until after seven to go to dinner, knowing that Harry and Ron would be gone by then.

After dinner, I returned to the library until curfew, and thanked whatever higher power had managed to keep my former friends out of the common room that evening. I chose to ignore that their absence was probably due to the fact that they were still avoiding me, and instead focused my thoughts on other topics, such as my homework.

I continued this pattern for the rest of the break. When I had gotten through all my homework, I launched myself back into research for Hagrid's case, needing something to fill my days until I was assigned more work. I barely saw Harry or Ron throughout the remainder of the break and though this made me sad, it was also better than running into them everywhere.

When the term resumed and everyone returned to the castle, it became even easier to avoid Harry and Ron. The common room bustled with activity, the Great Hall was filled with excited chatter, and even the library was transformed from the haven of silence I had created into a social gathering place for those who wanted to appear to be studying. I sat with Neville at meals and ignored Harry and Ron when, far down the table, they pointedly sat with Ginny and her friends. I knew Ron disliked sitting with his younger sister. He must mean to snub and hurt me by doing so, I could see no other explanation.

Unfortunately, classes were a different story entirely. Our classes were not particularly large, and I sat with Harry and Ron in some of them. I did my best to deal with the fact that they wouldn't speak to me at all, and treated them as politely as I could despite the fact that with every passing minute, my insides were crumbling within me.

Loads of homework was piled on me from the first day back. It was a welcome distraction and I frantically immersed myself in it. Unfortunately, some people began to notice that something was wrong between Harry, Ron, and I. On our first Wednesday back, I was working on a translation for ancient runes when Neville came over to talk to me.

"Hey Hermione," he said tentatively as he sat down across the table from me.

"Hey Neville," I said, not looking up from my work as I rushed to finish it. Now that I didn't have to worry about doing Harry and Ron's work on top of mine, I was finding that I actually had just enough time in the day to get all my work done without using the time turner, but I needed every second I could get. After what Professor McGonagall had done for me over Christmas, I was determined not to use the no-sleep spell on myself because I knew she would be disappointed in me if I did.

"What's going on?" Neville asked.

"What do you mean?" I asked, as I dropped my quill and groaned in frustration at having to reach down to pick it up.

"With Harry and Ron," Neville replied. "You've barely spoken to them at all in the past few days."

"Nothing," I said evasively, starting back on my rune translation.

"There's got to be something wrong..." Neville pushed.

I snapped. "There's nothing wrong, Neville! Nothing! Go mind your own business," I cried, throwing my quill down and stuffing my books back into my bag. I stalked off to my dormitory and flung myself onto my bed, fighting the tears that were now quite familiar.

I didn't want to blow up at Neville, but I couldn't take my anger out on the people I was really upset with. I vowed to apologize to Neville the next day and decided that I had done enough work for the night. I got ready for sleep and crawled into bed, pulling my curtains closed around me.

After apologizing profusely to Neville the next morning, I determined not to blow up like that at anyone anymore. I was stronger than this and I had let my emotions get the better of me for much too long. When I descended to breakfast, I still felt a twinge in my heart when Harry and Ron passed me by without so much as a glance, but I reminded myself that they didn't matter anymore. The friendship we'd shared was over and I needed to focus on the future, not the past.

After classes were over on Friday, I headed to Professor McGonagall's office as usual for my weekly meeting to verify that I was using the time turner responsibly. I was confident that the meeting would go well, since I hadn't used my time turner except to repeat classes.

"I must admit, Ms. Granger," Professor McGonagall said after examining the time turner, "I am quite impressed with how well you are doing. Under the circumstances, I thought..."

"Thought what?" I asked defiantly. "What circumstances?"

"Nothing at all, Ms. Granger, you are doing splendidly, as I knew you would be," Professor McGonagall replied.

I knew Professor McGonagall meant that she thought I would be doing worse now that I was having problems with Harry and Ron, but I decided to take strength from the fact that clearly even those ungrateful idiots couldn't stop me from doing my best.

I spent the rest of the weekend on my own, as usual. I did all my homework, and even found time to do a bit more research for Hagrid's case. On Monday, I woke ready to face the world. I ate with Neville and ignored the voices I could hear a short distance down the table. Our first class was care of magical creatures.

When we had finished eating, Neville and I stood to leave and found that Harry and Ron were standing just inside the doorway to leave the Entrance Hall, obviously waiting for someone, probably Seamus and Dean. With determination, I held my head up and brushed past Harry and Ron. I realized that for the first time since Christmas, I could look at the pair and not feel like bursting into tears. I knew I would be fine on my own, better even. My work had actually improved and I had time for sleep.

Life was going on just as it always had, and I was thriving.


	55. From Bad to Worse

Chapter 55: From Bad to Worse

Thursday found me in the library as usual, flipping absentmindedly through more archives from the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. I was exhausted. I had been to eight classes – the most I ever had to attend in one day. Though my homework load was no lighter than normal, I chose to relax a bit for the night, as I had the whole weekend ahead of me.

As I flipped through the archives from 1916, I heard a commotion ensue a short distance away and looked up in curiosity. A sixth year Hufflepuff couple were arguing, and from what I could hear, it appeared that the boy had cheated on the girl and she had just found out. When she began throwing library books at the boy, Madam Pince began to march towards them, glowering, and I lowered my head back down to my work, not wanting to get involved.

As my hand turned the next page over, I almost missed it, but I stopped myself and flipped back to the previous page.

_October 14th, 1916. Elliott Winterton provoked a wild Hippogriff. Hippogriff attacked and Winterton spent two weeks in St. Mungo's. Injuries included one broken arm, two broken ribs, multiple scratches and cuts as well as lasting psychological trauma causing memory loss. Wife, Emilia Winterton filed a lawsuit against said Hippogriff pleading for the Hippogriff's termination. Verdict: the Hippogriff would be transported to America and an American donor would cover all hospital and judicial costs._

In my excitement to show Hagrid, I grabbed the book I had been flipping through and ran to the exit, completely forgetting that I was holding a library book. I came to an abrupt halt at the door, wondering why I felt like I had forgotten something, and it took a moment or two before I realized I ought to find Madam Pince and have her check out of the book for me.

Once I had checked out the book, I raced through the school and across the grounds. When I finally arrived at Hagrid's I pounded on the door, demanding entrance.

"Hagrid! Let me in! Hagrid! I found something! Hagrid!" I cried.

Suddenly, the door swung open and I stumbled.

"Hermione! Come in, come in," Hagrid said merrily, directing me to a chair at the table and getting me a mug filled with some unidentifiable beverage and a plate on which sat one of his famous rock cakes. "Where're Harry an' Ron?" Hagrid asked, sitting down across from me, dropping his own tankard down on the table.

"Oh, they, um, they're not with me," I said evasively, suddenly feeling a little uncomfortable. I had hopes that Hagrid wouldn't bring this up.

"Why not?" Hagrid asked, unwilling to let the subject go.

"Oh, I don't know," I said. "Busy I suppose."

"What d'yeh mean, 'suppose'?" Hagrid asked. "Thought yeh lot were thick as thieves."

"We used to be," I said bitterly.

"Now what's that s'pposed ter mean?" Hagrid demanded.

"It's nothing really," I said airily. "Harry and Ron are just a little angry with me right now."

"Why?" Hagrid asked. "Seemed fine jus' before Christmas."

"Yes, I suppose it was around Christmas that they got upset with me," I said guardedly.

"What's upsettin' 'em?" Hagrid asked, taking a large gulp from his tankard.

I looked down and began playing with my rock cake, trying to avoid answering the question, but when Hagrid continued to insist, I gave in.

"Harry received a Firebolt for Christmas, but there was no note, so I thought it was probably cursed or something by Sirius Black, and that it was meant to kill Harry, so I told Professor McGonagall and she took the Firebolt away to be stripped down," I said, finding that it actually felt good to finally talk about it. "Harry and Ron were really upset with me, because it was a great broom and he might not get it back now."

"But you were jus' lookin' out for 'em," Hagrid replied. "They'll come 'round."

"I don't think so," I said sullenly, looking out the window at the sloping grounds. If I continued talking about this, I knew I was going to end up breaking down the wall I had managed to build up around myself, and I couldn't have that. "That's not why I came down here though, Hagrid," I said. "I think I've found something we can use in the case for Buckbeak."

Once I began telling Hagrid about the case and how it might be used in our favor, the topic of Harry and Ron was completely forgotten. When I left a few hours later, my stomach grumbling and my bag stuffed with rock cakes Hagrid thought I had eaten, thoughts of Harry and Ron had been once again banished from my mind.

The next month became a cycle of mundane activities. I woke every morning and ate with Neville. Then I had classes, and I would spend all my free time in the library, either doing homework or working on building Hagrid's case. At dinner, I sometimes ate with Neville, and sometimes I ate on my own. After dinner, I would return to the library to get more work done, finally retiring to the common room right before curfew, where I would pile a stack of books up as high as I could in front of me to shield my view of the common room. I was careful to avoid thoughts of Harry and Ron, and even more careful to avoid Harry and Ron themselves.

And so, I was in the common room, buried beneath piles of books and parchment, when the uproar began.

"Woah!" someone cried, causing everyone to look up and rush over to the portrait hole.

I tried to see what was going on, but the crowd surrounding whoever had just entered was too thick.

"Can I touch it?" someone asked.

"Can I hold it?" requested another.

"Where'd you get it?" somebody inquired.

"Ravenclaw's got no chance now!" someone exclaimed.

Suddenly, a small gap appeared amongst the students and I got a clear view of Harry standing in the center of the crowd, the Firebolt clutched in his hand. My heart leapt unexpectedly and I lowered my head hastily, trying unsuccessfully to center my thoughts on ancient runes or arithmancy, anything to ignore the commotion.

After everything I had been through in the past five weeks, Harry had the Firebolt back. Obviously there had been nothing wrong with it after all, and I had sacrificed my friendship for nothing. Well, not nothing, there could have been something wrong with the broom. Unfortunately, that didn't make me feel any better.

The crowd began to disperse, and I focused all my energy on appearing to be working. I could feel Harry and Ron getting closer, but I pretended not to notice. When they stopped right in front of my table, I reluctantly raised my eyes to meet theirs.

At first, I thought they were here to gloat. I defended myself when they pointed out that it hadn't been cursed at all, saying that it was always best to be safe, especially when we knew there was someone out there intent on killing Harry. But then Ron went upstairs to give Scabbers his rat tonic and Harry sat down and started making conversation about my arithmancy homework.

I wondered if this was his way of patching things up and moving forward. It was too much to hope we could be friends again after everything, yet I found I very much hoped we could. It seemed like it was what Harry wanted.

Just as I was starting to feel like it was old times again, we were interrupted by a loud yell from the direction of the boys' dormitories.

"AAAAAHHHHHHHHH!"

I froze mid-sentence. The cry was unmistakable. As footsteps pounded down the stairs, I prepared myself for the worst. Whatever had happened, I was ready to offer any form of comfort, support, or sympathy that I could, despite the strain of the past five weeks. When Ron emerged from the doorway, he strode over to me, waving a bed sheet in my face, demanding that I look at it.

I was confused to say the least. What could be so horrifying about a sheet? But then Ron made his thoughts clear as day. He screamed that the blood belonged to Scabbers and then threw a handful of hairs that were unmistakably Crookshanks' onto the table in front of me.

I looked up pleadingly at Ron once more, but was met with an icy stare.

"You can't think that Crookshanks would..." I couldn't even finish the sentence, bile rising in my throat even at the thought of my cat eating Ron's rat.

"What else am I supposed to think?" Ron screamed at me. "It's not like you've ever cared enough about Scabbers to bother keeping a watch on that demon cat!"

I felt tears threatening to escape, tears that had been safely locked away for weeks forcing their way out of my eyes. "You can't mean that Ron," I said weakly.

"You let that cat roam around wherever it wants!" Ron cried. "You probably even wanted that menace to kill Scabbers!"

A wave of determination washed over me and I pushed away from the table, rising from my chair to meet Ron on my feet. I swallowed my tears and felt my resolve harden.

"I can't even believe you would say that!" I cried.

"Well it's true!" Ron retorted. "Your cat killed Scabbers and you didn't even bother to stop it!

"You don't even know that Crookshanks killed Scabbers!" I cried, now screaming right back at Ron. I realized that the entire common room was staring at us, but then I decided that I didn't even care. "The only evidence you have is those hairs! For all you know, they could have been there since Christmas!"

"Crookshanks has been trying to kill Scabbers ever since that day in Diagon Alley!" Ron roared. "And you never cared! You just let Crookshanks into our dormitory on Christmas and then he figured out where I was keeping Scabbers, and now he's gone back and finished him off!"

"You've hated Crookhanks since he jumped on you in the Magical Menagerie!" I shouted back.

"Because he's been after Scabbers this whole time!" Ron cried. "What has Scabbers ever done other than be a good rat?"

"You don't even know that Scabbers is dead!" I replied. "It's just a spot of blood, maybe you got a paper cut and Scabbers is really upstairs hiding somewhere!"

"Scabbers is dead and it's all your fault!" Ron screamed with finality, tossing the sheet in my face and stalking away.

"You know Hermione, Crookshanks does seem to roam around here a lot, and he has been attacking Scabbers ever since we met him," Harry pointed out when Ron was gone.

"Fine, side with Ron, I knew you would!" I cried. "First the Firebolt, now Scabbers, everything's my fault, isn't it? Just leave me alone, Harry, I've got a lot of work to do."

When Harry reluctantly left, I sunk down into my chair, all the anger that had been building throughout the argument with Ron seeping out of me, being replaced by a hollow emptiness. For a minute, one glorious minute, I thought things could go back to the way they were, that Harry, Ron and I could be friends again. I had hope. But that hope was gone now, destroyed forever.

When I looked up again, it was to find that everyone in the common room was still staring at me in shock. I supposed I had given them quite a show. I contemplated packing my bags and running up to the confines of my bed, but I could see Lavender and Parvati gawking at me from the fireside, and I knew they would soon be telling Sally-Anne and Lily of my outburst.

Not even caring that it was late and certainly past curfew, I swept my things into my bag and ran to the portrait hole. I clambered through the hole and, completely ignoring the cries and threats being thrown at me by Sir Cadogan for being out after hours, flew down the stairs, the only thought in my mind being to get away.


	56. Emotional

Chapter 56: Emotional

It wasn't until I was halfway across the castle that I came to a stop, throwing my bag aside and curling up into a ball on the floor at the foot of a suit of armor. I clutched my knees, pulling them towards my chin and cried. I cried for all the days I had spent without friends before coming to Hogwarts. I cried for all the nights I had gone to bed feeling utterly alone. I cried for every day I hadn't let myself cry over the last dreadful month. I cried for being thick enough to think that Harry and Ron would be able to forgive and forget.

When every last tear had been shed, I took a few deep breaths and it finally dawned on me that I could get in serious trouble for being out after curfew. It was pure luck that I hadn't run into Filch or a teacher yet. Suddenly, I heard footsteps approaching. Fear gripped my chest as I scrambled to pick up my bag from where I had flung it and I hid behind the suit of armor.

As the footsteps got closer and closer, I didn't dare peek from around the suit of armor to see who it was. When they finally came to a halt right in front of me, my heart actually stopped for a second. I was sure I was caught. Then the footsteps started again and gradually got farther and farther away. When I could no longer hear them anymore, I darted out from my hiding place and ran as quickly as I could back to Gryffindor Tower.

When I stepped through the portrait hole, I breathed a sigh of relief to find the common room empty. I really didn't want to have to deal with people gawking at me anymore that night. I slowly made my way up to my dormitory, pressing my ear against the door to make sure my dorm mates were asleep, and then slipped in as quietly as I could.

"_Look at what your cat did Hermione" Ron cried, brandishing a bloodstained sheet in my face. As the sheet waved in front of me, the bloodstain grew bigger and bigger until the sheet was completely red, blood dripping onto the floor. "Look what you've done!"_

"_N-no, I didn't..." I tried to say, but Ron kept going._

_"You've never cared about Scabbers. You hate Scabbers. I bet you're glad he's dead!" Ron screamed at me, his face morphing into that of his rat._

"_You always hated me. Are you happy now? Are you? Are you?" the rat asked as tears began streaming down my face._

_The face morphed back to Ron's as he threw the sheet aside. "I bet you wish I was dead too!" he cried. "Too bad your cat isn't big enough to eat me, huh?"_

_The tears became more forceful now as I denied this new accusation._

"_You never liked Scabbers and you never liked me," Ron shouted. "Well Scabbers is gone now, what else do you want?"_

_I tried to tell him I never wanted Scabbers to die, but the words wouldn't come._

_"I know what you want. You want to get rid of me too, right? Well no problem, you won't have to deal with me anymore," Ron cried. "We're not friends anymore. Did you hear me? I never want to see you or talk to you again. I _hate_ you!"_

I woke up in my bed, trembling; the words _'I hate you'_ echoing in my head as I choked back sobs, not wanting to wake my dorm mates. I was exhausted, even more exhausted than before I had gone to bed, but I couldn't go back to sleep now. I would only be plagued by more horrible nightmares.

After I had calmed down enough to get out of bed, I gathered my things and went downstairs to the common room, where I settled onto the couch in front of the fire and stared into the flames. I tried to put my walls back up, to block out thoughts of Harry and Ron, but I couldn't. I tried distracting myself by reading a book for muggle studies, but after reading the first paragraph seven times without absorbing any information, I gave up, returning to my previous position of staring into the flames in the fireplace.

Though my homework wasn't enough to distract me from everything, I found that working on Hagrid's case was. As soon as curfew had lifted the next morning, I escaped to the library, where I could continue my research. I wouldn't let Hagrid and Buckbeak suffer because of my problems.

For the past month, I had been looking for more information on the case from 1916 in the hopes that I could use it to our advantage. Unfortunately, I could not find any reference anywhere as to who the anonymous American donor was or why they would pay all the court and hospital fees.

I had to go to my classes, but when I got out of history of magic at the end of the day, I went down to visit Hagrid to give him an update on my research. I avoided all conversation involving Harry or Ron, and left an hour later with a bagful of rock cakes and a promise to bring Hagrid another update in a week.

As I headed back to the castle, I suddenly felt a wave of anger wash over me, though I couldn't understand where it had come from. Almost mechanically, I approached the castle wall and reached into my bag, pulling out a rock cake. I imagined it was Ron's face and threw it as hard as I possibly could at the stone wall. Watching the rock cake hit the wall and then smash into pieces was so satisfying, I instinctively put my bag down and reached in for the next cake, this time picturing Harry's face. It was liberating, almost therapeutic in a way, so I threw the rock cakes until I had none left, my anger dissipating a little with each throw, until I was completely drained and I crumpled to the ground.

A fresh wave of tears poured from my eyes as I lay there on the ground, and I didn't even hear Hagrid approaching, nor did I remember moving from my spot on the ground in the courtyard. All I knew was that I was suddenly back in Hagrid's hut, a cup of cocoa in front of me and Hagrid across the table, concern etched across his face. He didn't question me, or try to stop me from crying, he just let me sit and cry until I felt ready to talk.

"Last night, Harry got his Firebolt back," I began with a sniffle, reaching for the handkerchief Hagrid was offering me to wipe my face, not even bothering to wonder or care whether the handkerchief was clean. "I think he was going to forgive me, but," I had to choke back a sob before continuing. "Ron found a spot of blood on his sheet and he thinks that Crookshanks killed Scabbers," I said.

I explained to Hagrid about the shouting-fest that had ensued and ended with a re-telling of my dream.

"Have yeh considered apologizin' ter Ron?" Hagrid asked after hearing my whole story.

"What for?" I cried, suddenly feeling angry again. "I haven't done anything wrong!"

"Well no, but yeh could apologize fer lettin' Crookshanks wander around all the time, an' then yeh could tell Ron that yer sorry 'bout Scabbers," Hagrid suggested.

"Ron should be the one to apologize!" I cried. "He accused me and Crookshanks of something without any evidence!"

"Ah well, people can be a bit silly abou' their pets," Hagrid replied, nodding to himself.

"Well I'm not apologizing," I said, crossing my arms over my chest and holding my head up defiantly.

I couldn't sleep that night. I was terrified of falling asleep and having another nightmare. About half-way through the night, I gave up and went back down to the common room to work on more homework. I was exhausted, but I managed to stay awake.

The next day was the day of the Gryffindor vs. Ravenclaw quidditch match. At breakfast, I was uncharacteristically hungry. Even Neville noticed and commented that I should slow down on the pancakes, but I ignored him. I joined him in the stands for to watch the match and actually found myself enjoying the game.

Partway through the game, my stomach started to hurt. I figured I had eaten too much at breakfast and dismissed it. When Harry caught the snitch, I felt elation that my friend had won the game, and then a wave of sadness swept over me when I realized I couldn't celebrate with him.

As the Gryffindors poured out of the stands to congratulate the team, I slipped away, unnoticed and returned to the common room to claim a corner of the room to hide in before the inevitable party would start.

Professor Burbage had instructed us to read a book called _Home Life and Social Habits of British Muggles_ and I had until Monday to finish it. I was finding it particularly difficult to get through, mostly because I had spent my entire life with British Muggles. In fact, I had basically been a British Muggle until I got my Hogwarts letter.

By the time the party had started, I had given up all hope of reading the book. Even if I had been able to focus, the noise was so loud I could barely think. Just as I was thinking of packing up and going up to my dorm, Harry came over to where I was sitting. We talked for a moment, and then Ron made a comment loudly and in front of everyone about Scabbers being dead and how much he would have enjoyed the party.

It was too much. I couldn't handle anything anymore. I burst into tears and ran away as fast as I could. I was equally upset with Ron as I was with myself. Couldn't I hold it together for just a few minutes? Why was I suddenly unable to keep from crying at even the slightest thought of Harry or Ron?

My stomach gave a pang then, and I curled into the fetal position, convinced I was going to die right there from my misery.

I must have fallen asleep, because I was abruptly wrenched from my slumber by the sound of screaming coming from another room. Along with the rest of Gryffindor Tower, I descended to the common room to find out what was going on.

Down in the common room, everything was very confusing. Fred and George Weasley seemed to think that the party was starting again, Percy Weasley was yelling at everyone to go to bed and then Ron spoke up, causing everyone to freeze for a moment when he said that Sirius Black had been in his room with a knife.

Professor McGonagall arrived to investigate and it was discovered that Sir Cadogan actually had let a strange man into the common room. Evidently Neville had written down all the passwords on a piece of parchment and then lost them.

I almost felt bad for Neville. Almost. I wouldn't ever want to be in his position. Professor McGonagall was madder than I had ever seen her. But he had led Sirius Black right into our haven. We were all supposed to be safe in Gryffindor Tower.

And Black had been in Harry and Ron's dorm. Obviously, he had gotten the wrong bed and was actually trying to kill Harry, but if Ron hadn't screamed, that mistake could have gotten both him and Harry killed. Black was a mass murderer. He wouldn't hesitate to kill that entire dormitory if he thought it would get him out of Hogwarts undetected.

I shivered as I thought of the possibility of losing both Harry and Ron in one night. Strangely, I didn't feel like crying anymore. I wasn't sad. I was terrified.


	57. Hagrid's Case

Chapter 57: Hagrid's Case

_I jumped out of bed and gleefully ran straight to the boys' dormitory, intending to cry out "Happy Christmas," but all my joy and goodwill shriveled when Harry and Ron shot me dirty looks_

"_What's she doing here?" Ron asked distastefully._

"_I don't know," Harry replied. "I certainly didn't invite her."_

"_Go away Hermione, we don't want you here," Ron added._

_As I turned to go, my spirits crushed, the room suddenly got darker and Sirius Black materialized at the foot of Ron's bed holding a bloody knife._

"_I'm not Harry!" Ron cried, staring fearfully at the knife. "Harry's not here!"_

_As I saw the knife descending, I tried to run forward to stop it, but I found that I couldn't move._

"_No! Ron!" I cried as the knife pierced his heart._

_It was then that Black seemed to realize his mistake. He turned around, looking for Harry, and finally found him across the room. Still unable to move, I watched as Black advanced on Harry and plunged the knife into Harry's heart as well._

I woke up screaming, my bed surrounded by my four dorm mates.

"Hermione what's wrong?"

"What happened?"

"Are you alright?"

My dorm mates all shot questions at me in rapid fire and I began to feel dizzy. The dream had been so vivid and was still so fresh in my mind that I had started hyperventilating.

"Calm down Hermione."

"Take a deep breath."

"Did you have a nightmare?"

The room was still spinning and questions were coming at me from all sides. My head and heart were pounding and I was convinced that Black had actually returned to finish off Harry and Ron.

"What were you dreaming about?"

"You really need to calm down."

"Do you need a glass of water?"

I had to get away from the voices. I jumped from my bed and bolted to the bathroom, slamming the door behind me and sliding down onto the floor. I leaned my back against the door and held my head in my hands.

"What a spaz," I heard someone say on the other side of the door.

"Why can't she just act normal for like, one day?"

"How are we supposed to go to the bathroom now?"

I pressed my hands against my ears to tune them out and tried to calm down. Harry and Ron were fine. The castle was protected. The teachers were looking for Black this very moment. They wouldn't let anything bad happen.

I took deep breaths and rocked back and forth against the door until I had my emotions under control. I tentatively pulled my hands away from my ears and pressed one ear up against the door, hoping my dorm mates were sleeping. I didn't hear any noises, so I slowly got to my feet, brushing my pyjamas off as I did so. I didn't get any more sleep that night.

First thing in the morning, I left Gryffindor Tower and went down to see Hagrid. It was almost time for his case. He was to go to the Ministry on Friday and it was already Sunday and I needed to give him some final pointers and such. I knew I probably wouldn't have any time during the week to see him, so I made sure to bring everything he would need with me.

Of course, he had heard all about the break in, and that was the first thing he asked me about when I arrived. I ended up in tears again, angry at myself for having so little control over my emotions these days. It's not like Ron was even injured, so I couldn't understand why I was so torn up about it.

That Saturday was a Hogsmeade weekend, but I elected to stay behind and work on my transfiguration essay. Hagrid's case had been the day before, but I hadn't heard from him yet, and I was waiting for a letter from him.

I was finding homework almost impossible to do because I was so worried about Hagrid and Buckbeak, so when an owl began pecking at the window next to where I was working, I flung my quill away and opened it, untying the scroll from its leg and sending the owl away.

I frantically opened the letter, my stomach curling into a knot. I was nervous to see the contents, but I knew I had to read it sometime.

It wasn't good news. Hagrid had lost the case. He thanked me for my help, and tried to be optimistic, saying that Buckbeak had enjoyed the trip, but I knew he must be a wreck.

I immediately stuffed my things back in my bag and headed down to Hagrid's. He wasn't back yet; he had obviously sent the owl on his way, so I sat on the front steps and waited.

It was only about half an hour before I caught sight of Hagrid and Buckbeak making their way up from the castle gates, and I ran to meet them, wrapping Hagrid in a big hug.

"I'm so sorry Hagrid," I cried. "I should've done more research."

"No, no, it was me," Hagrid replied. I could hear in his voice that he was close to tears. "I got all confused an' lost some o' the notes yeh gave me... An' then..."

"What happened?" I asked.

"Well apparently that anonymous donor from America in the case from 1916 only paid the fees an' had the creature shipped overseas so he could cut 'im open an' study 'im," Hagrid said.

I felt terrible. I had done the research, I had found that case, and I was the one who sent Hagrid off to the Committee for the Disposal of Magical Creatures with a plea that they remember the mercy of the American donor in 1916. It's a miracle they didn't ship Buckbeak off to America to be dissected right away with what I told Hagrid to say.

"Hagrid I'm so _so_ sorry," I repeated. "I had no idea."

"I know you didn't," Hagrid said. "He wouldn't 'ave been advertisin' that 'e was cuttin' open creatures. People wouldn' like that."

"But I still should have looked into it better," I insisted, feeling too horrible about myself to let Hagrid make excuses for me.

"Yeh did the best yeh could, Hermione," Hagrid replied. "It was a really good case. There's nothin' more yeh could 'ave done."

"But – " I started to protest, but Hagrid cut me off.

"It's fine, Hermione," Hagrid said. "If yeh don' mind though, I'd like some time alone with Beaky."

I told Hagrid I understood, and left, slowly returning to the castle. But I felt lost. I felt like I was drifting. Hagrid had lost. My case had lost. Buckbeak was going to be executed. I needed desperately to talk to someone, but I had nobody to talk to. I supposed I could talk to Neville when he returned from Hogsmeade, but I doubted Neville would really understand. Harry and Ron would understand. They knew Hagrid just as well as I did. To Neville, Hagrid was just another teacher. To Harry, Ron, and I, Hagrid was more than that. He was a friend.

And even if Harry and Ron were ignoring me right now, they still deserved to know about Buckbeak, I decided. They deserved to know what had happened at the Ministry, and Hagrid didn't seem in any shape to tell them. I was pretty sure he'd started crying when I left, but I didn't go back in to find out. He'd asked to be alone, so I respected that.

I wasn't sure if Harry and Ron would be back from Hogsmeade yet, but I figured they would return to the common room when they got back, so I headed for Gryffindor Tower. When I arrived in the corridor where the portrait hole resided, I caught sight of Harry and Ron coming down the hallway in the other direction.

Ignoring Ron's rude comments, I gave them the news, passing over the letter Hagrid had sent me as proof. At first, neither of the boys could believe it, but then the truth began to sink in and they grew angry. I tried to explain what would happen next, though I wasn't confident that the appeal would go any better than the case itself.

Then Ron put on a determined expression and insisted that he was going to help this time around.

I couldn't believe my ears. I had given up on Harry and Ron ever wanting to be my friend again, but here was Ron volunteering to work with me. For a split second, I paused to wonder if this would be like the last time, when Harry had tried to patch things up with me, but then Ron had blown up at me about Scabbers.

It was then I realized something important, something crucial that I hadn't realized before. All this time I'd been waiting for an apology from Harry and Ron for what they had said to me, but they were just waiting for the same thing from me. Only I hadn't bothered to consider that with any seriousness because I was so wrapped up in myself and my misery.

Overcome with emotion, I flung my arms around Ron's neck and started sobbing. I apologized, and told him I really was sorry Scabbers was dead, whatever had happened. I couldn't believe that after all this time that was all it took, but apparently it was. Ron muttered something about how the rat had been old, and then I felt his arms move around me and he returned the hug, albeit a little awkwardly.

Through my tears, I smiled and felt something settle in my heart. This was how it was supposed to be. Harry and Ron were my friends, no matter what, and I had deluded myself thinking I could survive without them. I wiped the tears away, and for the first time in months, I didn't feel any more welling up behind my eyes. I knew our friendship wouldn't go back to the way it had been right away, but at least we had made a start. And a start was always good.


	58. Losing Control

Chapter 58: Losing Control

"Exploding snap?"

I sighed. As much as I welcomed the reinstatement of my friendship with Harry and Ron, I was now painfully aware of how much they really did slow down my work. But I valued a game of exploding snap with Ron and so I set my runes essay aside.

"Exploding snap," I said, a genuine smile upon my face. It was the first in a very long time.

We played a couple rounds before I finally announced that it was time to get back to work.

"Come on Hermione," Ron whined. "One more game?"

"You still haven't finished your potions essay or started your herbology assignment," I pointed out. "And both are due tomorrow."

Ron sighed and dragged his work towards him across the table. Though I did finally start getting my work done, Harry and Ron were asking me so many questions that it was hard for me to stay focused on my own assignments.

After about twenty minutes, Ron shoved his essay in my face. "Here, how's that?" he asked, as unmindful as ever that I had my own work to do. I sighed, immediately falling back into the habit of revising Harry and Ron's essays for them. Though Ron didn't thank me, I knew he was grateful.

As the days passed, I became more and more irritable. It was even worse than in the first term. At least then I had been sleeping. Now I couldn't use the time turner except for class and I was only getting two or three hours of sleep each night at best.

It was in care of magical creatures that I finally snapped. Harry, Ron, and I had been talking with Hagrid about Buckbeak's appeal and how we still had a chance to change the Ministry's mind. Hagrid was crying because he was upset about Buckbeak's sentence and Malfoy made a comment that I couldn't ignore.

He was making fun of Hagrid for having emotions, said it was pathetic and that he wasn't worthy of being our teacher. And suddenly all the anger and frustration I'd been feeling since the beginning of the year came to the surface.

To say I was angry with Malfoy would have been the greatest understatement of the year. And while it certainly wasn't fair to blame him for my current workload, my sleeping situation, or the problems I'd been having with Harry and Ron recently, there was quite a bit that was his fault. He'd been the cause of Hagrid's pain all year, the reason he'd been forced to amass a case and stress and now face saying goodbye to his beloved hippogriff. He was the reason I'd had to spend so many days in the library researching similar cases for Hagrid in an attempt to build him a solid case.

Without even realizing what I was doing, I marched over to Malfoy, raised my arm and swung it straight into his face. I felt pain shoot through my arm, but I didn't pay it any attention. I put all my emotions, the rage, the despair, the frustration, the irritation, the bone-wrenching tiredness, and the disgust with how little the Slytherin cared about other people into it and as I began to yell at him, I raised my fist for a second strike.

Before I could land another punch, Ron grabbed my arm from behind and pulled me back. I yelled at him to let go, angry that the momentum I'd had was now gone. But I was a witch, I remembered. I had a wand. I pulled it out and pointed it straight at Malfoy's now very red face. As I tried to decide which spell to use, Malfoy took a step backwards and then spun and ran away in the direction of the dungeons. His face was one of pure fear, and that alone was satisfaction.

For a second, I let myself feel proud. Never in my life had I done something quite like that. I was not a person who favored physical confrontations. I even avoided getting caught up in the kinds of duels that Harry and Malfoy occasionally had in the hallways. I was the fight with words type, or more often the avoid fighting at all type. But this felt good. This felt like all my pent-up feelings finally having an outlet.

I still felt very worked up and I decided that I should probably cool off a bit before attempting to go to a lesson. So, I decided to go to the common room and spend the period studying. I would use the time turner to repeat the hour later and actually go to class. I was willing to defend myself to Professor McGonagall if need be.

As we got closer to the charms classroom, I looked for an opportunity to slip away, and found one when I saw a small alcove behind a tapestry on the wall to my right. I slowed down almost imperceptibly and then slipped into the alcove while Harry and Ron carried on to the classroom. When they were sufficiently far away, I slid out again and made my way to Gryffindor Tower.

It wasn't until I started digging around in my bag for my arithmancy books that I realized that my hand was still hurting from hitting Malfoy. I hadn't anticipated how hard his face would be. I grabbed my wand and performed a quick healing spell, immediately feeling much better and much calmer. The anger I had been feeling had dissipated.

I spread out my books and began working on filling in my number charts, but I started feeling more and more tired as I progressed through my work. I hadn't gotten more than three hours of sleep each night for over a week and my body was begging for a nap.

In the end, I decided that I would close my eyes for ten minutes and then I would be refreshed and I could return to my homework.

Before I knew it, I was being shaken awake. Harry and Ron stood over me, confused and wondering where I'd gone off to and why I hadn't joined them in charms class.

I cursed myself as I realized I'd slept much longer than I'd intended. I couldn't go back in time and repeat it now either, because if I did, I would be messing everything up. Harry and Ron hadn't seen me in charms and that had led them to wake me up and remind me of charms. If I used the time turner and went to charms, Harry and Ron would not have this conversation with me, and I wouldn't remember to go back and attend charms.

Harry and Ron mostly remained confused as to how I could have forgotten about a class I'd been about to enter, but I dodged their questions as best I could since I still couldn't tell them about the time turner. Ron seemed worried that there was something seriously wrong with me, and so instead of staying and undergoing more scrutiny, I told them I needed to talk to Professor Flitwick, which I did if I was going to make up for this mistake. I grabbed my bag and ran out of the common room, not stopping until I was just outside Professor Flitwick's classroom.

"Professor, I'm so sorry!" I cried as I entered the room and turned towards his office, where he was seated at his desk, grading papers that looked suspiciously like the one I had been supposed to hand in today.

"Ms. Granger," Professor Flitwick acknowledged me. "I trust you had a good reason for missing my class today?"

"I'm so sorry," I repeated. "I was doing homework, and I meant to come to class, but I fell asleep and then it was too late. I've just been so tired recently," I explained. "What have I missed?" I asked.

"We did cheering charms today," Professor Flitwick replied. "I won't penalize you for missing the class, but I will advise that you take great care in learning today's spell. We won't be spending another class on it, and it may turn out to be quite important," he said, giving me the sense that this would be the charm he would be testing us on in June.

"Of course, Professor, thank you," I said. I began to reach into my bag to hand in my essay, but Professor Flitwick stopped me.

"I'm sorry Ms. Granger, but your essay was due at the beginning of class. It is now almost two hours late and I simply can't accept it. I'm going to have to give you a zero for the assignment," Professor Flitwick informed me.

I dropped my bag and gaped at my Professor. A zero? Had I heard right? He was giving me a zero? This would be my first zero ever. My first failed grade. It was the first time I had failed to hand in an assignment on time as well. I couldn't believe myself. I was supposed to be better than this.

"I suggest you get to your next class," Professor Flitwick said as a group of sixth years began to enter his classroom and settled themselves at the desks. "You wouldn't want to miss that lesson as well."

I nodded mutely and raced to Divination, arriving just as the ladder descended to allow us to climb up. I lamented about the missed lesson, but Harry and Ron continued to seem puzzled and confused with me as we ascended to the stuffy classroom and settled around our usual table.

Today, there were crystal balls on them, meaning we were moving onto the next unit. I was glad. Maybe I would have better luck with crystal gazing than I had with tessomancy, cartomancy, and palmistry thus far. Particularly frustrating had been palmistry. At this point, we had all studied each other's hands at length, and it was entirely doubtful that anyone was going to suddenly develop more lines to study, so we were just re-predicting the same things every class.

Once Professor Trelawney had introduced the subject and assigned us to start our first attempts at crystal gazing, I set myself to work with the same determination as in any other subject. I really did try to see something, but it became blaringly obvious quite quickly that there was nothing more than a bunch of swirling fog in the crystal ball on the table. I became irritated and wished this had been the class I had missed instead of charms.

After a while, Professor Trelawney began making the rounds. When she came over to where Harry, Ron, and I were sitting and started to predict Harry's death once again, I decided that I'd had enough. She predicted Harry's death every class, and clearly Harry was still with us. She could just predict his death for the rest of his life, and surely one day he would die, but that hardly made her a reputable Seer. Everyone dies at some point in their life, after all.

It had been a trying day already and I was sick and tired of wasting an hour up in this stuffy tower twice a week when there were more important things I could be doing. So, when Professor Trelawney outright told me that I was too stupid for her class, I cracked.

I was taking twelve classes and I was at the top of eleven of those classes; divination excluded, obviously. I spent every waking moment studying and learning, helping my friends with their assignments, and I'd even found time to research Ministry cases for Hagrid even though it was completely unrelated to any of my classes.

I threw my bag over my shoulder and angrily stomped out of the room. Why should I waste my time in divination if I was apparently so bad at it? Professor McGonagall was making me give up two classes at the end of the year anyway, why not drop divination now?

I still had about forty minutes before my next class, so I returned to the common room to learn how to do cheering charms. When it was time for transfiguration, I was still incredibly wound up, and even herbology was not enough to calm me down.

By eleven o'clock that night, I was still so incredibly furious about Professor Trelawney and sleeping through charms and Malfoy, yet so terribly exhausted at the same time. I felt like Ron might be right, I was finally starting to crack. I was at the end of my rope. I'd been struggling and fighting with myself and trying desperately to do everything all at once. But I couldn't do it anymore. I needed relief.

So, making sure that there was no one around to witness it, I gave in and did what I had been avoiding since Christmas break. I still remembered the spell as clear as day. I suppose I would have felt guilty if it had been another day, but I was so beyond caring anymore, I just wanted something to make me feel better.

I pointed my wand at myself and said the spell: somno exhaustio. I felt the familiar wave of calm wash over me, the same one I felt whenever Professor McGonagall used the spell on me at the end of the week.

When it was over, I was no longer even the smallest bit tired. In fact, I felt like I could run around the castle ten times and still have the energy to get through all my homework without any sleep. With renewed vigour, I plunged back into my herbology essay and silently rejoiced when I realized I didn't have to do any divination homework.

With my tiredness gone, my other concerns and frustrations seemed to dissipate. Catching up on charms seemed so easy now in light of my newfound energy. I could no longer remember why I hadn't done this sooner.


	59. Busted

Chapter 59: Busted

Unfortunately, the delight I felt in the first few days of using the no-sleep spell didn't last. After only a week, I discovered that I had returned to my irritable self. Even the sight of a classmate approaching to ask a question made me want to scream in frustration. I was very short-tempered and I think Harry and Ron realized it, because they made sure to keep others a safe distance away from me while I was working, creating an invisible bubble around me that no one could enter. I tried to keep the snapping to a minimum around them though, because it would be all too easy to set Ron off again.

As time went on, I found that the spell seemed to have a lesser effect each time I cast it. The exhaustion began to return much quicker and even when I was under its effects, I felt wide awake but sluggish. It took more effort to do even the simplest things, like pick up a quill. However, I was able to get through the enormous workload that was assigned over the Easter holidays and even made it all the way to the end of term without completely losing it again.

I knew that Professor McGonagall had warned me against this, but the end of the year was so close, I really didn't see any harm in using the spell until the end of exams. Then I would have to hand the time turner in anyway, though I was still trying to find a way to convince Professor McGonagall that I could keep it. Even without divination, I needed a time turner to keep all four of my elective classes.

The final quidditch match arrived and Gryffindor won the quidditch cup for the first time since I'd been at Hogwarts. Harry had made a spectacular dive for the snitch and Malfoy never stood a chance.

Finally, it was the last day of classes before exams were scheduled to begin. Despite the no-sleep spell, I was becoming very frantic and nervous. If I didn't ace all of them, Professor McGonagall would take away the time turner. It was crucial that I get no less than one hundred percent on everything.

My final potions, charms and ancient runes classes flew by, and then I was eating lunch in the Great Hall. Next, I had defence against the dark arts and herbology, and finally, my last class of the day, history of magic.

As much as the class normally interested me, today Professor Binns simply did not have my attention. At least he was doing review, so I wasn't missing any new information as I read about cheering charms in my charms book. Though I had mastered them a while back, I was determined to make sure I knew absolutely everything about them since I'd missed the actual lesson.

When class was over, I practically bounced over to Professor McGonagall's office for my weekly meeting. She greeted me with her usual greeting and I handed over my time turner, waiting while she examined it to ensure I had only used it for classes. When she was satisfied, she handed it back to me and performed the spell on me. Though I hardly needed her to, I didn't say anything, because that would reveal that I was using it on myself, which I wasn't supposed to be doing.

As I thanked her and turned to leave, she stopped me. "I presume you are ready for your transfiguration exam on Monday morning?" she asked me lightly, assuming of course that I was completely prepared. "I know you're always prepared, but with all the extra pressure you've been under with your classes, I thought I'd ask."

I took a minute to think about it and then remembered one spell from the beginning of the year that I had been able to do then that I could no longer do properly. If she was offering to give me a pointer or two, I wasn't going to turn my nose up at it.

"Professor, I've actually been having a bit of trouble with one spell," I said tentatively.

"Which one?" she asked.

"The lapifors spell," I replied. That was a spell that turned small objects into rabbits. "When I do the spell, I'm able to turn the object into a rabbit, but it's always asleep and I can never wake it up," I explained. "I couldn't find a reference to that happening anywhere in the textbook."

Professor McGonagall's face transformed into a mask of shock, horror, and fury. I shrunk back and wondered why she was so upset all of a sudden. I was only transfiguring sleeping bunnies, what was wrong with that?

"Ms. Granger, I'm going to ask you this once, and I want you to answer me honestly," Professor McGonagall said, her voice controlled, but shaking.

"Okay," I said my heart pounding. What was she going to ask?

"Have you been using a spell known as _somno exhaustio_ on yourself?" Professor McGonagall asked.

I suddenly felt like a weight had sunk into the bottom of my stomach. My heart stopped for a second while I processed what Professor McGonagall was saying. How did she know? I had been hiding it so well. It was almost the end of the year, and if I could just have made it through the next week, I would have been fine.

I tried to speak, but my mouth refused to open, so I nodded. Professor McGonagall closed her eyes and took a deep breath before asking me the next question.

"And did you happen to read the side effects, by any chance?" Professor McGonagall asked.

I still couldn't speak, so I shook my head. I hadn't had a chance to read more than the spell's incantation and wand movement. I had been in the restricted section and I had panicked that Madam Pince would return any second.

Professor McGonagall took another deep breath, and then finally addressed me again. "Wait here, Ms. Granger. I will be back shortly," she said before standing up and leaving, shutting and probably locking the classroom door behind her.

My heartbeat had started back up again, and now it was beating wildly. What was she going to do to me? Probably take away my time turner, I realized. And just before the exams, this was a nightmare. What else would she do? How many detentions could I serve before we had to go home for the summer? I would probably be in detention every day until the end of seventh year for this. She'd told me outright that I wasn't to use the spell on myself and I'd gone behind her back to learn it anyway.

Suddenly, a horrible though occurred to me. What if I was expelled? That was probably the worst thing that could possibly happen, and I decided that it was exactly what she was going to do. Professor McGonagall had left to get Professor Dumbledore and they were going to expel me. I would have to return to the Muggle world and go to the secondary school near my parent's house. I would have to tell everyone that I had been expelled from the school for gifted they thought I was attending. Worse still, I would have to tell my parents what I had done. It would be humiliating, especially after everything that I'd gone through the previous summer to get them to let me stay at Hogwarts.

By the time I heard Professor McGonagall opening the door again, I was nowhere near the picture of calmness I had wanted to be when she returned. If I was going to be expelled, I wanted to be expelled with dignity, but I was still a complete mess.

I turned slowly towards her, convinced Professor Dumbledore would be there as well, but it was only Professor McGonagall. She was holding a book in her hand that I recognized as the book from the restricted section.

In utter and complete silence, Professor McGonagall returned to her seat behind the desk and flipped the book open to a specific page. Then she turned it around and I saw before me the same page I'd used to learn the spell in the first place.

I glanced up at Professor McGonagall questioningly, but her stony glare told me I was meant to read. I skipped the beginning where the mechanics of the spell were described and read the part I'd ignored the last time.

_When performed correctly, the no-sleep spell allows the caster to absorb all feelings of tiredness and exhaustion from the recipient, and transfers their energy and strength to the recipient. This allows the recipient to remain awake much longer than should be physically possible. When performed, the caster should be well rested and should be prepared to sleep longer than usual as they will be twice as tired after casting._

_This spell should not be used frequently by either the caster or the recipient. Results of the overuse of the spell for the caster include, but are not limited to, excessive grouchiness, increased headaches, loss of ability to do any form of physical activity, and possibility of falling into an exhaustion coma. Results of the overuse of the spell for the recipient include, but are not limited to, dizziness, increased heart palpitations, increased agitation, and increased exhaustion when the spell wears off._

_Under no circumstances should the recipient and the caster be the same individual. A lack of differentiated recipient and caster will cause the magic to find a substitute for the caster. Upon one casting of the spell by the recipient on themselves, they will feel much the same as if there had been a separate caster. However, the exhaustion that would have been transferred to the caster will instead manifest itself in the recipient's wand, making any and all magic they attempt subsequent to casting the spell extremely hazardous. Should the recipient continue casting the spell on themselves, the benefits of the spell will be lessened with each casting of the spell, as a wand cannot rest and thus cannot regain energy over time. Any magic attempted with this wand will grow more and more hazardous and unpredictable with each casting of the no-sleep spell which is why it is forbidden for this to occur._

When I finished reading, I kept my head down as though I wasn't. I was terrified of what Professor McGonagall would say when I did. I stayed in the same position for five minutes, my heart thumping harder with every minute that went by, until Professor McGonagall finally spoke.

"I know you're finished reading," she said, causing me to hesitantly raise my head. "Do you have anything to say for yourself?" she asked.

"I... I didn't... didn't think..." I started, looking up. But I couldn't control my thoughts enough to figure out how I wanted to finish my sentence.

"That much is clear," Professor McGonagall said.

"I'm sorry," I said, bowing my head in shame. I couldn't continue to look her in the eyes. They contained too much disappointment for me to handle.

"Ms. Granger, when we spoke in the fall, the terms of our agreement were that I would allow you to keep the time turner provided you were _responsible_," Professor McGonagall said. "And from what I can deduce, you have been anything but responsible. I ought to take away your time turner right now."

My head snapped back up. No matter how ashamed I was feeling, even the thought of losing my time turner now was so unspeakable that it chased all other thoughts from my mind. I had one more week left. I just had to make it to Thursday and I would be through all my exams. Without my time turner, I wouldn't be able to write them all. Worse still, it would be arithmancy and ancient runes that I wouldn't have the time to write; two of my favorite subjects.

"What? No! You can't take it away now!" I cried. "Besides, I haven't technically been abusing the time turner!" It was the wrong thing to say, but I said it anyway.

"Ms. Granger, I don't think you are in any position to argue with me. Without the time turner, you would have had no need to use the spell, because you would not be registered in as many classes as you currently are," Professor McGonagall replied.

I lowered my head again. She was right, of course. I knew better than to use a spell before reading about it. I had just been so nervous in the restricted section that I didn't want to linger any longer than it took to get the spell itself. Reluctantly, I reached for the chain around my neck and took off my time turner, wordlessly handing it out to Professor McGonagall.

"What are you doing?" Professor McGonagall asked.

I looked up, confused at her question. "I thought you said you were taking away my time turner," I explained.

"I said I ought to, not that I will. As it is the end of term, I will allow you to keep it for one last week," Professor McGonagall said.

A rush of gratitude swept over me and I began thanking Professor McGonagall profusely. "Thank you, thank you, thank you. Thank you so much, you don't know what this means to me,"

"However," Professor McGonagall interrupted, "that is not to say you will not be punished." I sobered and waited for the worst. "Fifty points from Gryffindor, detention with me tomorrow and Sunday evening, and I will be writing to your parents immediately."

The only thing that really registered was the part about the detentions. "But Professor, I can't do detention this weekend. I've got to study for my exams!" I cried in shock.

"I think you'll find that you can do detention this weekend. You can and you will. Unless you'd rather I took the time turner away now? But then you won't be able to use it to write your exams," Professor McGonagall said. "In fact, if I took away your time turner now, you wouldn't be able to use it this weekend either," she continued, giving me a pointed look.

"You mean I can..." I started to say, but I was interrupted once more.

"I said nothing of the sort," Professor McGonagall said. "This will be the last time I check your time turner, and you will return it to me Thursday evening when your exams are finished. In the meantime, I suggest you consider the seriousness and gravity of what you have done."

I nodded and rose to leave, recognizing the dismissal. As I approached the door, I paused and turned around. "Professor, what made you realize I was using the spell?" I asked.

"Energy is neither created nor destroyed, only transformed," Professor McGonagall said. I wondered for a second why she was stating a scientific principle I had learned in muggle school, but then she continued. "When you used the spell on yourself, you were removing exhaustion and giving yourself energy, but energy doesn't come out of nowhere. You drew energy from your wand and all the exhaustion was in turn drained from you and back into the wand. When you transfigured the rabbits, they were sleeping because your wand needed to transfer the tiredness somewhere else and the easiest outlet was the creature it was making."

I nodded and left, pondering over what Professor McGonagall had said. While I was walking back to Gryffindor Tower, I came to an abrupt halt when I came to another realization. The book had said that the caster of the spell received all the tiredness from the recipient. That meant that once a week all term, Professor McGonagall had been on the receiving end of all my exhaustion. She had been sleeping for me, had taken all the risks outlined by the book for me.

I felt horrible. After everything she had been doing for me, I had gone and broken her trust. I felt like the absolute worst student to ever roam the halls of Hogwarts. She'd let me off easy for what I'd done. A couple of detentions, fifty points, and a letter home? The talk with my parents wouldn't be fun, but it couldn't be worse than what I'd just sat through.

Regaining the use of my legs, I made it back to the common room and sat at my usual table, where Harry and Ron were playing wizard's chess.

"You two had better start studying," I said, my authoritative tone covering up the shame and humiliation I was still feeling.

"Later," Ron said, waving a hand in my direction. "Got all weekend."

I rolled my eyes and opened my own books. Whether or not Harry and Ron wished to succeed on their exams, I was determined to do my absolute best and prove that giving me with the time turner hadn't been a mistake.


	60. Exam Time

Chapter 60: Exam Time

"...and...you may begin," Professor Vector announced. After a crazy weekend of revision and detention it was finally here: the moment of truth. My first exam was arithmancy, which I was confident I would do well in because it was one of my favorite subjects.

I flipped the exam over and plunged into the first number chart enthusiastically and before I knew it, I was finished and the exams were flying off of our desks and into Professor Vector's outstretched arms.

I didn't have time to feel nervous as I slipped into an empty broom cupboard to go back in time for my transfiguration exam, but when it was over and Professor McGonagall ushered us all out of the classroom, I began to panic for ancient runes and charms that afternoon. I was already getting a headache from my morning exams and I had to get through two more. I was pretty sure Professor McGonagall was trying to torture me by putting four exams on the first day. Especially since this was the only day when I had overlapping exams.

I was too nervous to eat so I re-read the last five chapters of _The Standard Book of Spells Grade 3_ over lunch, much to Harry and Ron's annoyance since I read it out loud under my breath to better remember the words.

I went to charms first, and when that was over I returned to the past to go to my ancient runes exam. I hadn't studied as much of ancient runes as I would have liked, and I panicked half-way through when I couldn't remember if the rune I was meant to translate meant _bumblebee_ or _river_. When the exam was over, I couldn't dwell on it because I had to get started revising for care of magical creatures, potions and astronomy.

Despite the hectic demands of my revision and exam schedule, it wasn't until Thursday I ran into a major problem. It was our defence against the dark arts exam and Professor Lupin had decided to create some sort of obstacle course that we had to pass through that contained many of the creatures we had learned about this year. Harry did excellently and then Ron went but got stuck in the marsh, which I guessed had contained a hinkypunk.

When my turn finally came, I entered the obstacle course to find myself faced with a pool with a grindylow. I paused and recalled the lesson on grindylows before reciting the spell needed to stop them from attacking. I moved on then to a path with a bunch of potholes in it containing red caps. I waited by each pothole for the red caps to emerge and then shot them with a hex before moving on.

Next was the marsh where Ron got stuck and sure enough there was a hinkypunk trying to misdirect me. I did a quick spell to show me the correct path and ignored the creature that was trying to point me in the other direction. When I emerged from the marsh, I could see I was almost at the end. All I had to do was battle with whatever was in the trunk ahead and I would be done.

I carefully climbed into the trunk and said "lumos," a ball of light appearing on the tip of my wand. I peered around, looking for whatever I had to fight, when suddenly instead of a dark creature, Professor McGonagall emerged from the shadows.

"Professor McGonagall?" I asked, confused.

"Ms. Granger, I am very disappointed in you," Professor McGonagall said, looking down at me.

"W-why?" I asked, biting my lip.

"You failed each and every one of your exams. What do you have to say for yourself? I gave you that time turner so that you could attend more classes because you were a star student! What have you been doing all year? What a waste. Do you realized how much I personally invested in you this year? Not only did I put my reputation on the line to get you that time turner, I personally saw to your wellbeing all year at the expense of my own. And then you disappointed me by lying to me over and over again, abusing the privileges given to you, and all for nothing! You're a disgrace Ms. Granger, a disappointment to me, to Professor Dumbledore, and the entirety of Hogwarts," Professor McGonagall said.

"I f-f-f-f-f-failed?" I finally managed to get out, tears burning behind my eyes. How was this possible? I thought I'd done alright on my exams. Maybe I could have done better, but I hadn't thought I'd done so bad that I'd failed!

"You did indeed," Professor McGonagall said, pulling out a sheet of paper and shoving it in my face

Ancient Runes: **Troll**

Astronomy: **Troll**

Arithmancy: **Troll**

Care of Magical Creatures: **Troll**

Charms: **Troll**

Defence Against the Dark Arts: **Troll**

Herbology: **Troll**

History of Magic: **Troll**

Muggle Studies: **Troll**

Potions: **Troll**

Transfiguration: **Troll**

"What do you call this? Failure! You're a disappointment Ms. Granger! A disappointment and a waste of my energy!" Professor McGonagall continued to yell at me as I burst into tears and ran out of the trunk. I intended to bypass my class and find an empty bathroom where I could cry for hours, but Professor Lupin stopped me, concern etched across his face as if he didn't already know.

Then he insisted it had only been a boggart, and it occurred to me that the middle of an exam was an awfully strange time for Professor McGonagall to declare that I'd failed all my exams. And how could I have already failed Muggle Studies? I wasn't meant to write it until that afternoon.

I continued to cry for a while longer though, now terrified that I really had failed everything and that Professor McGonagall would tell me so tonight when I went to return the time turner. My stomach twisted into knots. I had already failed defence against the dark arts, obviously, because I hadn't even realized Professor McGonagall was a boggart. I only had one chance left to prove I wasn't a disappointment and it was my muggle studies exam this afternoon.

I pulled out my textbook and buried myself in it, refusing to eat anything more than a slice of bread that Ron had to butter for me. When it was time for my exam, I made my way to Professor Burbage's classroom with wobbly legs and sat down at my desk, staring at the exam sitting upside down on the desk.

"You may begin," Professor Burbage said all too soon, and I flipped the exam over and stared at the first page, none of the words sinking in. I knew it. I was going to fail. I had no idea what to write, I had no idea even how to read.

Then, a little voice perked up in the back of my mind. "You can do this," it said. "You grew up as a muggle, this should be easy!"

I realized the voice was right and took a deep breath before re-reading the first question again.

_Explain the term 'electricity' and why it is important to muggles._

I could do this. This was easy. I answered the question quickly and flew through the rest of the exam, handing it in with a smile on my face and then running off to join Harry and Ron in the common room.

"Where's Harry?" I asked when I entered the common room to find Ron playing chess with himself.

"Still with Trelawney," Ron replied. "She saw us individually."

"See anything?" I snickered, the thought of trying to see something through the ridiculous fog in the crystal balls making me laugh.

"Nah, just made some stuff up," Ron replied as he re-set the board so we could play properly.

Suddenly, there was a rapping at the window next to us, so I opened it and an owl flew onto the table, holding its leg out to me. There was a scroll tied to it, so I removed it and unrolled it, wondering what it could be.

"What is it?" Ron asked as I stared down at the note incomprehensibly. It was from Hagrid. The appeal Ron and Harry had worked on had been lost. The execution had been set for tonight.

Wordlessly, I handed the note over and waited for Ron to read it through.

"I can't believe – after all that work – " Ron said in disbelief.

"I know," I muttered. This felt worse than when we'd lost the original case, somehow. This time there would be no second chances.

All the worries that had been floating around in my head disappeared and Ron and I just sat there in the shock and the sadness as we tried to figure out how we could lend our support. It was late, too late to be wandering around outside, Harry especially.

When Harry returned from his final exam, we showed him the letter and he lamented that the invisibility cloak would have been perfect for this situation, if not for the fact that he'd left it in the Hogsmeade passageway the last time he'd visited the village.

I decided to forgo my lecture about the dangers of sneaking into Hogsmeade when a cold-blooded murderer is out looking for you and instead decided we needed to get the cloak back. It would be less suspicious for me to retrieve it, so I got the directions from Harry and then set out, with plans to meet up with the boys again after. We would set out after dinner, closer to the time of the execution when Hagrid would need us the most.


	61. Buckbeak

Chapter 61: Buckbeak

Finding the passage and opening it was easy enough. It was dark inside, so I got out my wand and cast a quick _lumos_. The passage was suddenly bathed in a dim light that showed off the crumbling walls and ceiling. The ceiling was low, so I ducked before entering and then carefully began to make my way into the tunnel. I went slowly, looking around cautiously for the cloak.

I realized then that the cloak would be invisible, as it was an _invisibility_ cloak, and I wouldn't be able to see it, so I rolled up my sleeves and dropped down to my hands and knees with a grimace so that I could feel around for it. It smelled strongly of dirt and mud, and with my face so close to the ground, I had to put a hand over my nose as I crawled around.

I felt something on my foot, and screamed when I craned my neck around to find an abnormally large cockroach crawling on me. I clapped my hand over my mouth frantically, worried that somebody had heard me, and froze, but when nobody joined me in the passage, I decided I was safe and continued. I worked much more rapidly now, wanting more than anything to just get out of here and finally, my hand brushed over the silky-smooth material of the cloak.

I grabbed it and scrambled to my feet, letting out a grunt when my head banged against the low ceiling. I raced out of the passage before I could be accosted by any more insects and then returned to the common room to find Harry and Ron for dinner. It would have been suspicious for us to not go down to the Great Hall after all.

Once we had eaten, we snuck into to an empty room off the Entrance Hall to wait until everyone had cleared out. We probably could have left sooner, since we'd be invisible, but we didn't want to risk running into anyone and alerting them to our presence. With three people under the cloak, it would be difficult to be stealthy.

Finally, when the last of the stragglers exited the Great Hall and began making their way back to their common room, we knew it was time. We crossed the Entrance Hall as quietly as possible and then slipped out the front doors, hoping they would still be open later when we needed to get back inside.

When we got to Hagrid's cabin, we knocked and waited for him to open the door.

Hagrid was a wreck. As long as we'd known him, Hagrid had been very in tune with his feelings, never shy to cry when the situation called for it. But there were no tears today. Instead he just looked lost. He fumbled with everything he touched and his mind was all over the place. He seemed disoriented, jumbled, frazzled. What was about to happen was unprecedented and he didn't know how to respond to it.

I felt tears prickling behind my eyes and averted my gaze as they started to pour down my cheeks. It was just so unfair that they were going to do this to Buckbeak when the hippogriff hadn't even done anything wrong. It was Malfoy being a git that had caused all of this. And I could have stopped this if only I'd done more research or made a better case for Hagrid. I'd left the entire appeal up to Harry and Ron because I'd had so much work, but if I'd helped maybe Buckbeak would have gotten off.

While I was helping to prepare tea, since Hagrid was in no shape to do it himself, I had a sudden fright. I'd reached for the milk bottle, intending to pour some milk into the jug I had finally found, but when I looked inside, I screamed and dropped the bottle. It was Scabbers. After everything, Scabbers was alive!

In the excitement of being reunited with his rat, Ron, and by default Harry and I as well, became completely distracted from the current situation. It wasn't until Hagrid pointed out that the execution committee was approaching that I remembered that we were supposed to be there to comfort Hagrid, not rejoice over discovering Ron's pet.

I felt like a horrible friend. Hagrid deserved more. I wished we could have done something, said something, anything to make this day less awful for Hagrid, but he just kept insisting that we leave before we got caught. He insisted that he didn't want us getting into trouble, and while we all would have been fine getting into trouble if it mean staying with Hagrid, we could also see that it would only stress him out more if we stayed.

We left through the back door into the garden and passed Buckbeak, who seemed agitated, almost as though he knew he was about to die. The men were getting closer, we could hear them now, so we reluctantly threw the cloak over ourselves and departed.

My feet moved mechanically as we walked around to the front of the cabin. The execution party had just entered Hagrid's hut, and I knew they would be coming out soon to do the deed. In that moment, I realized that I truly didn't want to be there to watch. When we'd come down, we'd only been thinking about Hagrid. But with the hippogriff before me, I became acutely aware that he was moments from death and I wasn't ready to witness it. If we couldn't be with Hagrid to comfort him, then I didn't want to be here at all. It was just too horrible.

We made it about halfway before Ron stopped suddenly. Knowing we were minutes, maybe seconds away from the dreaded moment, I wailed to Ron to keep moving. I didn't want to be anywhere nearby when it happened. I didn't want to hear anything, see anything, or feel anything.

I heard a creaking sound that I knew was Hagrid's front door and voices approaching the garden where Buckbeak was. I started to panic now, my heart beating wildly in my chest. I tried to pull Ron along, but he was struggling with Scabbers, and I couldn't go ahead alone because we all needed to stay hidden under the cloak.

We stopped again and I almost cried, knowing we still weren't far enough away because I could still hear the men's voices behind us. Ron continued to struggle, trying to muffle Scabbers' squeals while I tried to pull us all forward to no avail. Suddenly, the voices behind us stopped and my heart froze, knowing what was about to happen.

I shut my eyes even though I couldn't see anything anyway since I was facing the wrong direction and held my breath as I heard the swish and thud of an axe. I felt sick, forcing the bile rising in my throat down as I opened my eyes and swayed, feeling dizzy. A new wave of tears silently began pouring down my face. I felt Ron's hand wrap around mine and squeeze lightly in an attempt at comfort.

Harry tried to turn us around, but Ron and I stopped him. We couldn't go back now. It was too late. It was over, and there was nothing we could do for Hagrid except upset him by landing ourselves in detention. With Ron's hand still firmly wrapped around mine, we focused on returning to the castle and staying hidden.

Ron and Scabbers continued to fight and then Crookshanks appeared, coming towards us as if he could see right through the cloak. Ron's hand let go of mine as Scabbers started squirming even more vigorously and I tried to get Crookshanks to leave us alone by telling him to go away, but he ignored me.

With a shout, Ron lost his grip on Scabbers and he scurried away through the grass. Crookshanks bolted after him, and before I knew what was happening, Ron had thrown off the cloak and was chasing after the two animals.

I called out after Ron in fear, not caring anymore if Fudge heard me. Harry and I followed, running as fast as we could with the cloak still over both of us. It was slow going, and we didn't catch up to Ron until we came upon him laying on the ground with Scabbers between his hands as he tried to fight Crookshanks off.

There was a noise from behind us then, and we all turned around to see what it was. I hoped desperately that it wasn't Fudge, but when I saw what it was, I suddenly regretted that wish. It was an enormous black dog that happened to look exactly like the grim Professor Trelawney kept seeing in Harry's future. I didn't believe the nonsense about the grim being a death omen, but this dog did not look friendly and that was enough to make me fearful.

Before either Harry or I could reach our wands, the dog jumped towards us and knocked Harry over, rolling away and then standing up again for a second attack. Behind me, Ron had stood up and he bravely pushed me out of the way and then ran towards Harry, pushing him out of the way too.

The dog missed Harry, but grabbed Ron's arm in its mouth, beginning to pull Ron away. Harry tried to pull the dog off of Ron, but he was too late. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a branch slam into Harry, sending him flying to the ground. I lunged at the dog desperate to free Ron from it's grasp and trying to ignore the blood that was now everywhere, but another branch came at me. I screamed in shock and pain as the branch connected with my chest and I fell to the ground, my vision blurring until I could no longer see anything.


End file.
